Someone To Watch Over You
by TealEyedDragon
Summary: Sequal to STLO, Set four years later. Hitsu/Matsu get sent away suddenly on a mission to the world of the living, leaving their close friends to take care of their energetic 4 year old son Kotaro. Other pairings Uki/Uno Shun/Nanao
1. Chapter 1

Hello, This story is the direct sequel to my other story Someone To Lean On. It is set Four years after the events of that story. I was planning on having a break before starting this story, but I just Could'nt resist ^_^.

I do not own Bleach, only the cutey goodness that is Kotaro Hitsugaya =)

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 1<p>

It was an incredibly busy day in the Fourth Division Infirmary. September had rolled around again and that meant one thing for the relief team. It was time for the annual patient medicals for the entire Shinigami population. Captain Retsu Unohana insisted every year prior to the cold winter months that everybody was required to have a check up.

This year they'd begun with the Thirteenth Division and were working back through the squads. So far everyone from the Thirteenth, through to the Eleventh had been seen to. The majority of the Tenths members had been seen the day before, so today the team were seeing to the seated officers and of course the Captain and Lieutenant.

In the examination room she was occupying, Unohana was personally seeing to the Hitsugaya family. Or to be more precise, Rangiku and her four year old son, Kotaro. Rangiku's son was the exact replica of Toushiro. He was a very small baby, who grew into a very small four year old. He had his father's snowy white locks and startling teal eyes, but his personality was warm, bubbly and bouncing. Just like his mother.

"Open your mouth and say ahhh."

"Ahhhh."

Unohana smiled at her youngest patient, "Very good, now just keep it open for me while I have a look at your teeth."

Kotaro, sat patiently on the chair, swinging his little legs back and fourth, which were far too short to reach the floor.

"OK all done young man" Unohana said gently, removing the dentistry tools from Kotaro's mouth. She walked over to a nearby stand and picked up the clipboard she'd been recording results on. "You're perfectly healthy and I'm pleased to tell you, you've actually grown half a centimetre since your last medical."

"Did you hear that Mummy?" Kotaro grinned showing two identical dimples on both of his cheeks "I'm not as little!"

"I did sweetie, that's wonderful news" Rangiku replied chuckling.

"However young man" Unohana continued, Kotaro instantly returned his attention back to her, "I would suggest that you don't eat so many sweets."

"I haven't been eating that many" Kotaro looked up at Unohana, his teal eyes full of innocence "Granddad gave them to me."

"That doesn't surprise me in the least" Unohana made a mental note to bring it up with Ukitake later, "Kotaro you have a lovely set of teeth coming through, make sure you look after them OK?"

Kotaro nodded "OK Gran-Gran."

"Well that's everything" Unohana declared referring to her clipboard "I just need to see one more person from the Tenth and that's your division finished."

Rangiku smiled "Toushiro sends his apologies Captain Unohana. He's swamped with paperwork and he said he'll stop by later."

"I'll see him at the Captains meeting in an hour Rangiku, I'll ensure that he stops by the Fourth afterwards."

Rangiku grinned "I'm sure you'll have better luck getting him to come here then I did."

Kotaro giggled loudly "Daddy said he'd rather eat a whole stack of paperwork then come for a check up."

"Again that doesn't surprise me" Unohana lifted Kotaro off the chair and placed him down gently on the floor. Once his feet met the ground he bounded over to Rangiku and threw himself at her for a hug.

Rangiku got to her feet and held Kotaro's hand guiding him over to the door "Well Kotaro its time we headed back home."

"Wait Mummy!" Kotaro disentangled his hand from Rangiku's and ran back over to Unohana.

Unohana crouched down to Kotaro's level and held her arms open. Kotaro bowled into her, hugging her tightly. Unohana enveloped him with her arms, wrapping him up in her warm embrace "Be a good boy for your Mum and Dad, Kotaro."

"OK Gran-Gran" He whispered quietly. Unohana released him and he padded happily towards the door, waving goodbye to Unohana as he went.

"Goodbye Captain Unohana" Rangiku waved and hurried after Kotaro who was already bounding away down the corridor.

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><p>Shunsui Kyouraku cracked an eye open and sighed in contentment. He loved that 'Just woken up feeling' you felt after a nice long slumber. What felt even nicer, was sharing it with someone and waking up with them nestled securely in your arms.<p>

He sighed again and wrapped his body tighter around his companion like a blanket, pulling her closer to his chest. He nuzzled the back of her neck and allowed one of his hands to trail up and down her smooth thigh.

"Mmm Nanao-chan" He mumbled against her neck.

He heard a sleepy sigh escape her lips. She shifted slightly in her sleep, pressing her bottom firmly against his groin causing him to harden. He held his breath hoping like hell she wasn't about to wake up, he was rather enjoying himself at the moment.

He felt her body relax again and let out the breath he'd been holding. Judging by the level of light in the room it must be around dawn. He pressed his lips against her shoulder and allowed his eyes to flutter close. It was much to early to even think about getting up yet. Just another hour he told himself before drifting back to sleep.

What felt like only a few minutes later, he opened his eyes again and saw that the room was much brighter now. How long had he been asleep? Looking down he was surprised to find Nanao still sleeping deeply in his arms. He grinned, he must have really tired her out during the night for her to still be asleep at this time of the day. Which reminded him, just what time was it anyway? He guessed it to be about ten in the morning.

He heard Nanao yawn and she turned in his arms so she was on her back. She shivered and carried on turning seeking out his warmth. Now her breasts were pressed firmly against his bare chest. He adjusted his arms so his hands were resting against her back, which he rubbed to keep her warm.

She sighed deeply, contented. He looked down at her and saw her eyelids flutter open. She blinked a few times before focusing fully on his face "Shunsui.." she said sleepily.

"Good morning, Nanao-chan" he kissed her forehead affectionately "Did you sleep well?"

"What time is it?" She asked squinting her eyes so she could see his face better.

He stretched an arm over the edge of the couch and pattered the floor till his fingers brushed against the metal frames of Nanao's glasses. He plucked them from the floor and handed them to her rather reluctantly. He loved gazing into her eyes when she wasn't wearing her glasses, her dark blue orbs tend to sparkle in just the right light.

She placed them on the bridge of her nose and once her eyes adjusted to them she began taking in her surroundings. Shunsui regretted giving them to her immediately.

Her face which was relaxed, calm and contented just moments before quickly changed into a deep scowl. First she took in their naked forms pressed tightly together on the couch. The couch!

She bolted upright, expecting to find herself in Shunsui's living room.

She groaned loudly in horror when she saw that her usually neat and organized desk was a complete mess. The paperwork she'd completed the day before, that had been left in neat piles had been knocked over and scattered everywhere. Their uniforms were scattered messily around the room, tossed aside and discarded during their.. activities.

She gasped once her sleep fogged brain caught up with the situation. She was in the office. He was in the office. They'd done it in the office. They were in the office! "Why are we in the office!"

Her eyes widened at the realisation. She sprang off the couch elbowing Shunsui in the stomach as she went. Shunsui leant back, using his arms as pillows as he watched Nanao dashing around the room in a mad panic. He had a silly grin on his face while he watched her frantically search for her pieces of uniform and other items of apparel, while keeping up a constant stream of questions. All rhetorical he guessed.

"What time is it! Why didn't you wake me sooner! I cant believe we are still in the office! What if someone decided to stop by with the days paperwork! Did you even bother to the lock the door!"

"Nanao-chan" he drawled, smirking lazily "Lets just try to calm down a minute OK?"

Nanao's eyebrow twitched "I'M COMPLETELY CALM!" she yelled, eyes flashing dangerously, her sleep tousled hair framing her face gave her a deranged look.

Shunsui froze, he'd never seen his Nanao-chan completely unravel like this before, occasionally flustered, yes. But never like this.

He dragged himself to his feet and decided to help her locate her underwear. He grabbed his pink haori and tossed it aside. "Ah is this what you're looking for Nanao-chan?" he asked holding up her black lace panties.

She snatched them out of his hand and glared coldly, completely failing to hide the blush dusting her cheeks.

He grabbed her hand gently and pulled her closer. With his other hand he began running his fingers through her hair "Breathe Nanao-chan," he whispered huskily, "I had a wonderful time last night and I'm sure you did too."

She was about to protest but he cut her off by placing a finger over her lips.

"It was even more wonderful waking up beside you" he said honestly "Please, lets not spoil a great start to the morning" he leant in and brushed his lips against hers.

Nanao was just beginning to relax into the kiss when a loud knock on the door had them both tearing their lips away from the other and staring at the door frozen.

Instantly they'd both clamped down on their energy signatures not wanting to alert whoever was out there to their presence.

"Did you lock the door?" Nanao whispered, trembling slightly.

"I don't remember" he whispered back. He felt Nanao's hands resting on his chest curl up into fists. His grip on her hips also tightened. He understood why Nanao was so tense. While it was perfectly acceptable for them to pursue a relationship with each other, as long as they remained discreet about it in front of their squad. It wasn't acceptable for them to be caught like this in such a compromising position. It would be setting a poor example to their squad members and if it got around the rest of the Seireitei and back to the Head-Captain. Well, it just didn't bare thinking about. At the very least Nanao could be demoted and forced to leave the division. Shunsui cringed inside, he would lose his Nanao-chan and it would be all his fault. He could only imagine the shame and humiliation she would feel if that were to happen.

The person outside the door knocked again, louder this time "Sir! Lieutenant Ise, Are you in there? I have today's paperwork here."

Nanao gulped loudly. Shunsui gave her a reassuring squeeze.

The light outside shone behind the person, casting a shadow on the thin paper walls. With a jolt in her stomach, Nanao watched as the shadowy hand reached for the door to slide it open. Nanao closed her eyes cringing. Shunsui quick as lightening manoeuvred himself so he was standing in front of Nanao, shielding her from view. So whoever walked through the door would only see his naked backside. This technically was his fault after-all, he would take responsibility for it.

However and much to both of their relief, the door wouldn't budge. Nanao unclenched slightly but still held her breath. The person knocked loudly one final time before giving up and walking away.

Once the shadow had disappeared out of sight and they were fairly sure they weren't going to be heard, they both let out one long sigh of relief.

"Damn Nanao-chan that was awfully close" Shunsui muttered snuggling against her.

"Too close" Nanao pressed her hands against Shunsui's chest and shoved him away hard. He lost his balance and went sprawling back onto the couch "You see this is exactly why I have a strict policy about how we conduct ourselves whilst in the office."

Nanao looked away from him and began collecting up the rest of her clothes. Shunsui lounged back on the couch observing her.

She hastily got dressed and tossed her hair up with a clip before heading towards the door. She was halfway to the door when she felt a vice like grip on her wrist "Nanao" Shunsui said dropping the suffix, which immediately got her attention. She looked over her shoulder at him, inviting him to continue.

He dropped her wrist and lounged back into the cushions of the couch "I'm sorry about that Nanao-chan."

Nanao waved his apology away "Don't be, it takes two to tango after-all" she turned on her heel.

"Nanao-chan" he called. She paused again and looked back at him "I meant what I said by the way, it really was wonderful spending the night with you and waking up beside you this morning."

Nanao broke away from his gaze and looked straight ahead, hoping to hide the blush on her face. She really was stumped on how to reply to that, so instead she put one foot in front of the other, towards the door.

"Where are you going Nanao-chan?" he asked sitting up.

"Home" She replied without looking back "I need a shower, a change of clothes and breakfast."

She stepped out the door and flashed away just as he said "I love you Nanao" he sighed and reclined back into the couch and closed his eyes.

He felt a whoosh of movement and a stinging, burning sensation exploded across his cheek. He bolted upright and wrenched his eyes open to find Nanao standing in front of him with her hand raised.

"Nanao..?"

"What do you think you're doing?" She scolded.

He just blinked in confusion.

"You cant just lounge there naked, taking a nap like that. You're in the office!"

"Oh right" he grinned back sheepishly.

She bent down and planted a kiss on his lips "I love you too.. even though you're an idiot at times" she pulled away again, intending to leave for sure this time "One more thing" she said walking towards the door "You have a Captains meeting today."

"What time does it begin?"

"Twenty minutes ago" she replied before flash stepping away.

He groaned and dragged himself to his feet, gathering up his discarded uniform. The last thing he wanted to do right now was stand through a boring Captains meeting, but at least he had the memories from last night of his lovely, naughty Nanao-chan to keep him occupied for the duration of the meeting. He held his hand up to where Nanao had slapped him. It was still tingling and burning and he was sure there would be a noticeable mark there. A smile graced his lips. She also told him that she loved him too. The smile on his face grew into a wide grin, she certainly was full of surprises today.

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><p>Toushiro Hitsugaya folded his arms across his chest and began absent-mindedly drumming his fingers against his upper arms. Looking around the Captains meeting room, several of his fellow Captains were also showing signs of growing impatience.<p>

The meeting was supposed to start thirty minutes ago. Hitsugaya glanced to his left at the space Kyouraku usually occupied and scowled. Trust it to be him everyone was waiting on, it was most likely he was passed out somewhere in a drunken slumber.

The weekly meetings were usually a quick get together. The Head-Captain would pass on anything he needed them to know, then ask if anyone had anything they needed to report and then pretty much sent them on their way. They were usually here no more then an hour tops.

He sighed inwardly, although he wasn't up to his neck in paperwork he was eager to get back to the office so he could get today's paperwork done and dusted, so he could spend time with Rangiku and Kotaro later on.

He heard a stifled cough from the opposite row of Captains and glanced over to Ukitake, who caught his eye and smiled warmly at him. He noticed Ukitake was looking considerably thinner then usual. His recent bout of illness had left his face gaunt and pale, while dark circles lined his eyes. Overall he looked tired and frail but despite all that, he still managed to radiate his usual warmth and kindness.

The corner of Toushiro's mouth quirked up in half a smile, Kotaro had been worried because he couldn't see his grandfather, it'd been three weeks since they'd last spent time together.

The restless shuffling ceased when the doors swung open and Kyouraku came striding into the room, he paused when he saw Ukitake and a grin broke out on his face "Juu buddy! Great to see you up and about again."

"Shunsui" Ukitake greeted his friend with a low raspy voice.

"Line up Shunsui" barked the Head-Captain banging his staff impatiently on the wooden floor, signalling the start of the meeting "I think we've all been waiting long enough for you."

Kyouraku swept over to his usual place next to Toushiro and adjusted his hat to hide his eyes "Kiddo" he muttered in greeting.

The meeting commenced and just as Toushiro expected, it was a fairly routine meeting. Each Captain gave a brief report on the running of their division. The latest patrols reported all was well. All in all the Soul Society was a pretty peaceful place and just as Toushiro expected, the meeting had been a complete waste of time for him.

He sensed the meeting was about to end when Yamamoto cleared his throat "And now onto the final topic of the day."

It took a lot of effort for him not to groan out loud, he heard Kyouraku next to him mutter some curse under his breath.

"A report came in yesterday, highlighting a strange occurrence happening in the world of the living. According to the report there have been a number of train derailments in the underground subway system."

"Derailments?" Kyouraku questioned "Is it some sort of fault with the rails?"

"That was the original conclusion, however there has been an increase in the number of these derailments over the course of a week" Yamamoto paused for breath and surveyed each of the Captains lined up "The Shinigami posted in the area also reported a lack of souls at each of the crash sites, despite whole trains of humans meeting their end."

Hitsugaya considered the old man's words "Could it be a hollow is responsible?"

"Its a possibility, which is why I'm sending squad ten to investigate."

Toushiro felt a bit taken back, had he just volunteered himself by asking a question? "Yes Sir."

"Good, You and your Lieutenant are scheduled to leave first thing tomorrow morning. The investigation should only take two weeks at the most" Yamamoto barked completely oblivious to Toushiro's sudden dilemma.

"Both of us?" he asked, not sure he was hearing right. It would be the first time he and Rangiku would be sent on a long mission to the world of the living together since Kotaro had been born. Usually if a mission came up only one of them would be sent, always leaving the other to stay behind to take care of their son. It was such short notice too, he wasn't sure how Rangiku was going to take it.

The Head-Captain, didn't show any signs of hearing his question as he was still ploughing on ahead with his speech "I shall have the full report sent over to your office later on today. That is all for today, you are all dismissed" The Head-Captain banged his staff loudly against the floor signalling an abrupt end to the meeting.

Toushiro stood their trying to process the sudden turn of events, it wasn't until Kyouraku threw an arm around his shoulder and began herding him out of the door did he realise he was still standing there and most of the Captains had already filed out of the room.

"Come on kiddo, I think Juu's waiting for us outside" Kyouraku clapped him on his shoulder "I know what's bothering you, but you really shouldn't worry. Between Juu, Retsu, Nanao-chan and myself, Kotaro will be in good hands."

Toushiro smirked "I know that, I'm more worried about Rangiku actually."

"Want a piece of advise kiddo?"

"Not really" Toushiro frowned, he wasn't sure if Kyouraku was actually being serious or whether he was about to sprout some ridiculous comment.

"This mission will be a good thing for you and Ran-chan, its about time the two of you had some alone time together."

The two of them exited the First Division and just as Kyouraku predicted, Ukitake stood waiting for them with Unohana by his side. As Toushiro walked closer to them, Ukitake threw an arm up to cover his mouth as a violent coughing fit struck him.

"Juu are you OK buddy?"

Ukitake waved his friends concern away "Fine, fine" he wheezed "The air is just a little chilly."

"Either way you should get out of the cold soon Juushiro" Unohana advised him gently.

Ukitake nodded his head in agreement "Toushiro I'll happily watch over Kotaro while you and Rangiku are away on your mission."

"Are you feeling well enough Ukitake? Kotaro's so full of energy lately."

Ukitake held up a hand to silence him "Toushiro its fine, I'm feeling a lot better then what I did and I'm looking forward to spending time with him again."

A chilly gust of wind kicked up causing Ukitake to have another coughing fit, Kyouraku stepped forward and rested a hand on his shoulder "Come on Juu buddy, I guess its time we had a drink."

"Sounds good" Ukitake replied with a hoarse voice "I shall see you tomorrow Toushiro, send my regards to Rangiku will you."

"Sure no problem."

"See you later Retsu" Ukitake smiled warmly at her.

"Yeah yeah pretty boy, lets go" Kyouraku tightened his grip on Ukitake's shoulder "Retsu, Kiddo" Kyouraku tipped his hat before flashing away with Ukitake in tow.

Toushiro shook his head at Kyouraku's antics "I guess I should get back to my office, I need to break the news to Rangiku" he turned and began to walk away from Unohana.

"One minute Toushiro."

He paused and looked back at the motherly healer and froze. Instead of her usual gentle smile gracing her lips, she was staring at him with her 'Creepy' smile.

"I think you ought to accompany me to the Fourth for your check up first, don't you think?" She asked in her no nonsense voice.

Toushiro swallowed hard.

"After all, you are going away on a mission for two weeks and what kind of example would it be setting for your division, if their Captain neglected his own health."

He felt his brow knit into a frown, the last place he wanted to go was the Fourth for a check up. He'd rather eat an entire stack of paperwork.

"And what kind of example would it be setting for little Kotaro. He was such a big boy earlier, made no fuss what so ever."

"FINE!" Toushiro blurted out a lot louder then planned, this was clearly blackmail "I'll go to the Fourth with you."

"I'm glad you see things my way" Unohana was instantly back to her usual serene self, smiling gently "Shall we?" she asked indicating they should start walking.

Toushiro sighed, who would have thought the gentlest Captain in the Gotei 13 would resort to using his own son against him.


	2. Chapter 2

Hello! I would like to Thank my first few reviewers for their comments, Its nice to know when the start of a story goes down well ^_^ As always all comments and feedback are greatly appriciated.

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 2<p>

Toushiro arrived back at his office sometime during the mid-afternoon. He pushed the door open and was surprised to find Rangiku sitting behind her desk working through one of the reports he'd left earlier.

"Rangiku?" He asked loudly, noticing the absence of his son and the unusual quiet in the room.

Rangiku looked up from the paper and put a finger to her lips shushing him. He cocked his head to the side, amused at the role reversal. Usually it would be him sat behind the desk tackling paperwork and he would be the one shushing Rangiku as she barged in loudly.

Rangiku grinned at his puzzled look and pointed towards the couch, Toushiro stepped quietly over to it and peered over the back. Kotaro was curled up on his side, eyes tightly shut together and breathing softly. Toushiro smiled and shrugged off his Captains haori, draping it over his sleeping son.

"What are you doing here Rangiku?" Toushiro went over to Rangiku's desk and perched himself on the edge "Not that I'm complaining or anything. I just wasn't expecting you in the office today."

Rangiku placed her brush down and stretched her arms out above her head, working out the knots in her neck and shoulders "Kotaro wanted to tell you his news."

Toushiro quirked an eyebrow "What news?"

Rangiku grinned and rose to her feet "I'll let him be the one to tell you" she moved slowly around the desk and wrapped her arms around Toushiro's neck and stepped between his knees "How was your meet-"

Toushiro cut her question off by pulling her into a kiss, it was rare to get a quiet moment together like this and he was fully intent on enjoying it. He ran his tongue along her bottom lip and she allowed him entry into her mouth. Rangiku was surprised at the urgency behind his kiss, almost like something was troubling him and he was seeking escape.

When the need for air had them pulling apart and gasping for breath, Rangiku leant into Toushiro and rested her forehead against his "Something is bothering you" she mumbled against his lips.

"Is it that obvious?" He sighed, cupping her cheek with his hand and rubbing his thumb over her cheekbone.

"What is it Toshi?"

"You're not going to like it" Toushiro began "But a mission came up."

A loud booming knock on the door ripped through the silent office, both Toushiro and Rangiku glanced over to the couch. Kotaro began to stir at the loud intrusion of noise, his little hands went up to cover his ears and his eyebrows knitted together in a frown. Rangiku growled and stomped over to the door and yanked it opened hushing the person with a well practised shush.

Toushiro walked over to his own desk and sat himself down, pulling the nearest pile of paperwork closer to him. Before picking up his brush and getting started he glanced over to the door at Rangiku and was amused to see that she had Renji Abarai in a headlock.

"Hey will you get off me you crazy woman!" Renji yelled loudly.

"Will you keep it down, he's taking his nap" Rangiku hissed back.

Renji glanced briefly over to the couch, saw the white Captains haori and quickly returned his gaze back to Rangiku "Sorry" he whispered back, but for the usually loud man, it came out a lot louder "I didn't mean to disturb Captain Hitsugaya's nap time" he replied sarcastically.

Toushiro's eyebrows knitted together as he scowled "What do you want Abarai?" He ordered in his Captains tone.

Renji snapped his gaze back to the couch, confusion washing over his features "Huh?"

"I'm over here" Toushiro growled out annoyed.

Renji, who had his back to Toushiro the whole time spun on his heel and met his icy glare "Captain Hitsugaya, my apologies" he quickly glanced back at the couch, before returning his gaze back to Toushiro who had his arms folded across his chest.

"I asked you a question Abarai, what do you want?"

"Oh right" Renji stumbled forward clumsily "My Captain sent me to pick up the file he requested Sir."

"Did Kuchiki mention a specific file?" Toushiro asked getting to his feet and walking over to the large filing cabinet that stood to one side of the window.

"He didn't say sorry, just that you would know which one."

Toushiro rummaged to the back of the cabinet where the more sensitive documents were stored, he reached for the only file stored there and pulled the thick bulging folder out. He walked back over to Renji and held it out.

"Abarai" Renji went to grab it but before Toushiro released it he added "Guard it with your life."

Renji's eyes widened at the comment and he glanced down at the folder. It looked like any other folder, except this one had big bold red lettering stamped on the front 'Top Secret'.

"Get it back to Kuchiki immediately" Toushiro said before letting go and sitting back down.

Renji nodded "Yes Sir" he turned on his heel again to leave and paused to look at Rangiku. She was kneeling down behind the couch, she had her arms folded resting on the back edge of it peering down at her son. Kotaro yawned and rubbed a little fist over an eye before rolling onto his other side and settling down again.

"Was there anything else you needed Abarai?" Toushiro asked.

"No Captain Hitsugaya" Renji was almost to the door when Rangiku looked up and stopped him.

"Renji are you going to ask me or what?" She asked smirking "I know you and the guys are planning another night out. Unless I'm not invited any more."

"Of course you're still invited Rangiku, I just naturally assumed you wouldn't be able to make it" he answered honestly.

"And why not?" She pouted playfully.

"Well, because its tomorrow night and you-" Renji was cut off.

"Abarai, if you don't have any more official business here, then leave" Toushiro ordered coldly.

Renji recognized the warning in his voice and left the office in a hurry, sliding the door shut behind him. When the door clicked to and Renji's footsteps had moved away down the hallway Rangiku turned her attention back to Toushiro.

"That was rude" she stated, getting to her feet and marching over to his desk.

Toushiro sighed and placed his brush back down "Rangiku-"

"Toshi we have been over this a thousand times already" she planted both her hands firmly on her hips and leant down so her face was closer to his "I don't go out nearly as much as I used to, because frankly my main priorities are you and Kotaro now."

"I know that Rangiku-" She held a hand over his mouth to cut him off.

"I'm not finished yet" she took a breath before continuing "But its nice to still go out occasionally with the guys. I know you worry when I do go out, but the guys know what my priorities are and when I say no, they know I mean it."

"Mpfff" Toushiro mumbled through her fingers.

"My days of stumbling home blind drunk in the early hours of the morning are long over" Toushiro gripped her wrist and pulled her hand off his mouth.

"That's not the issue here Rangiku" he released her wrist and sat up straighter in his chair, "I have no problem with you going out with your friends, just not tomorrow OK."

Rangiku cocked her head to the side "And why not?"

"Well as I was trying to say before we was interrupted, a mission came up-" Toushiro growled and slammed his hands down on his desk as another knock came at the door "Enter" he ordered short tempered.

The door slid open hesitantly and a rather shy looking girl poked her head through it "Sorry to disturb you Captain Hitsugaya" she said meekly before stepping into the room carrying a stack of papers over to his desk "These papers just arrived in from the Fourth division."

"Are they our Division members feedback notes from the recent medicals?" Rangiku asked stepping over to the girl.

"Yes Lieutenant."

"I'll take those Thank you" Rangiku relieved the girl of the large pile of papers and sent her on her way. She dumped them down on her desk then went back over to Toushiro's desk. She slid onto his lap and made herself comfy "Now where was we, you was saying something about a mission?"

Toushiro wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his chin on her shoulder.

"You're being sent out on the field again aren't you?" Rangiku asked when he remained silent.

There was another knock on the door and Toushiro sighed into her neck. Rangiku made to get out of his lap, but he tightened his hold on her waist wanting her to stay put "Enter" he called sensing his third seat on the other side of the door.

"Captain Hitsugaya" His third seat greeted "Lieutenant" he bowed to both of them in turn.

Toushiro had to give the man credit, he rarely batted an eye when he walked in the office to find either Rangiku sitting in his lap, or if they'd been sharing an embrace, "Hosokawa" he greeted with a nod.

"Sorry for the intrusion Captain, but could you authorize the use of the training grounds for the next two weeks Sir" Hosokawa offered the form to him, already filled out but just requiring his signature.

Toushiro took the form and neatly printed his well practised signature at the bottom of the form, he handed it back to his third seat "Is there anything else you need?" He asked a lot calmer compared to when he asked Renji the same question ten minutes prior.

"No that is all Thank you Sir" Hosokawa bowed to each of them again, he made his way back over to the door glancing at Kotaro as he passed the couch "Captain, Lieutenant good look on your mission" he said before sliding the door shut.

"Our mission?" Rangiku's eyes went wide "Are we both being sent out?"

"Yes Rangiku, the Head-Captain wants the two of us to go this time."

Well that wasn't so bad Rangiku thought, it was most likely just a routine mission out into the Rukongai, they would probably only be out for a day tops. It was rare that they got sent out on the same mission together, the Head-Captain took into consideration that they were parents now and one of them needed to stay behind to look after Kotaro.

The sound of running footsteps could be heard rushing down the outside corridor, Toushiro sighed "Are we ever going to get some quiet time today?"

"Doubtful" Rangiku said, leaning her head against his shoulder and running her hand over his chest "Who could it be this time?" she asked yawning.

"Tired Rangiku?" He absent-mindedly stroked her silky hair.

The footsteps drew closer and neither one of them even attempted to move from their comfy positions, the familiar presence getting closer wouldn't mind in the slightest at finding them like this.

The footsteps stopped outside and the next second the door slid open with a loud bang that made both of them wince.

"Shiro-chan!" Momo greeted breezily.

Toushiro scowled and looked over to Kotaro hoping he hadn't been woken up, he could have sworn he saw his son scowling lightly in his sleep.

"Grrr! How many times do I have to-"

"Yeah yeah, 'Its Captain Hitsugaya to you' and all that" Momo cut him off with a spot on impersonation of his most used sentence "Nice to see you Rangiku-san."

"Hi Momo" Rangiku greeted warmly.

"Where's little Shiro-chan?" Momo asked a little too loud, surprised that Kotaro wasn't climbing her leg to get a hug off her.

"He's sleeping Momo" Rangiku said in a hushed voice indicating the couch.

"Oh I'm so sorry if I was too loud" she whispered back.

Toushiro quirked an eyebrow "If you was?" he questioned sarcastically.

"You're a bit grumpy today Toushiro" Momo pointed out.

Toushiro decided to bite his tongue and refrain from making another comment "What brings you here Momo?" He even surprised himself that it came out nicely.

"I ran into Sasakibe when I delivered some paperwork to the first" Momo began to explain "He asked me if I'd deliver this report to you. Its all the information the Head-Captain could pass on regarding your mission to the World of the living."

Toushiro shot Momo a 'Shut up, Shut up now!' look. Rangiku got off his lap and twirled on her feet to face him, crossing her arms under her breasts "We're going to the World of the Living?" Rangiku asked while stretching out her arm to grab the report from Momo.

Momo let her have the report and began fidgeting uncomfortably, as Rangiku's eyes began to scan the first sheet of paper detailing the mission "For TWO weeks?"

Toushiro sighed heavily "Momo thanks for dropping that by, but could you please give us some privacy?"

Momo nodded, her dark brown eyes darting back and fourth between Toushiro and Rangiku, fully aware that she'd just put her foot in it "No problem, I'll just be going" she hurried for the door looking back over her shoulder "See you again Shiro-chan, Rangiku-san."

Once they were alone Rangiku perched herself back on Toushiro's lap "We're both going to the World of the Living for two weeks?"

"Yes Rangiku" Toushiro ran a soothing hand up and down her back "I'll admit I was surprised too. The Head-Captain wants us to investigate a possible Hollow attack on the underground subway system."

"Investigating. Its what we do best" Rangiku sighed "I guess this is what happens when you make a name for yourself."

"The Head-Captain has given us two weeks to figure out what's happening and deal with the situation. I doubt it will take us that long, so we'll try to flush out the Hollow quickly so we can get back home sooner" Toushiro wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer "It will be fine."

"What about Kotaro though? He sobbed his eyes out when you went away on the last mission and that was only for four days" Rangiku glanced over to their little boy who was still sleeping soundly "This time its both of us going."

"It will be OK Rangiku, Ukitake will make sure he's not upset for too long."

"I thought Captain Ukitake was still ill Toshi?"

"I saw him at the Captains meeting earlier, he's over the worst of it. He just looks kinda tired. He was insistent that he would be OK looking after Kotaro for us."

"Are you sure it will be OK? Kotaro's so full of energy lately, is it fair when Ukitake's only just recovering?" Rangiku asked concerned.

"I asked the same thing, he said it was fine. He's looking forward to spending time with Kotaro again" Toushiro said, repeating Ukitake's words from earlier.

"Well I guess I feel a bit better knowing Captain Ukitake will be taking care of him."

"It will all be fine, you'll see" Toushiro snuggled closer to Rangiku and began trailing kisses along her collarbone and up the side of her neck.

"What time are we suppose to be departing tomorrow?"

"The Senkaimon will be ready at 8am sharp."

"Oh joy" Rangiku replied dryly.

"Mummy?" Kotaro called out sleepily from the couch.

"We're over here sweetie" Rangiku replied softly.

Kotaro sat up on the couch, he looked at his make shift blanket and grinned "Daddy back now?"

"Over here little man" Toushiro said peeping around Rangiku and grinning.

Kotaro threw Toushiro's haori off him and stumbled off the couch, once he'd managed to find his feet he toddled over to them as fast as he could "Daddy!" he called lifting his arms up for a hug. When he was close enough Toushiro reached down and hoisted him up onto Rangiku's lap. Kotaro wiggled around so he was kneeling on Rangiku's legs but facing Toushiro. He locked his little arms around Toushiro's neck and tried to squeeze the life out of him with a suffocating hug "Daddy! Gran-Gran said I'm bigger!" he informed excitedly.

"Really? Did she say how much bigger?"

"Yeah half a centi-fingy."

"Centimetre Kotaro" Rangiku corrected.

"Good job little man, you'll soon be catching me up."

"Gran-Gran says I got nice teeth too" He opened his mouth wide so Toushiro could see "Ahhh."

Toushiro chuckled.

"Mummy I'm hungry."

"We're going to get something to eat now sweetie."

"Daddy too?"

Toushiro craned his neck so he could see the clock on the wall, three-forty "Yes little man, Daddy too. Me and Mummy are done working for today."

"Really?" Rangiku asked surprised to hear Toushiro finishing a lot earlier then normal.

"Yes, so why don't you two start heading home. I just need to write a list out for tomorrow then I'll be right along."

Rangiku and Kotaro slid off his lap "See you soon Daddy!"

Once he was alone he pulled a blank sheet of paper towards him and began jotting down certain tasks and orders for his division members to follow while he was away. He knew perfectly well that things wouldn't fall into chaos while he was away. He'd trained his division well so they could function just as well whether he was there or not.

He jotted down the final note and signed the bottom. He placed his brush down and stretched out his arms. He quickly neatened the office up and went about locking the windows and filing cabinets. He then picked his haori off the couch and tossed it over his shoulders and grabbed Hyourimaru off the stand next to his desk.

After one final sweep around the office he stepped out into the corridor and locked the office door behind him. He walked down the corridor and stepped into the shared office of his Third, Fourth, Fifth and Sixth seated officers.

"Captain!" They all greeted surprised to see him.

"At ease" He stepped over to Hosokawa's desk and handed him his list of orders "Anything important you need to know is on this list."

"Thank you Captain."

"See you all in two weeks" he began walking towards the door when Hosokawa stopped him.

"Erm Captain."

Toushiro looked back over his shoulder "Yes?"

"We was all wondering, with yourself and the Lieutenant away.." he trailed of hesitating.

Toushiro turned fully to face his third seat "Go on" he invited.

"What's happening with our youngest squad member? Sir."

Toushiro smirked, his division members were very fond of his son and therefore concerned about his welfare while he and Rangiku were away "He will be staying with Captain Ukitake at the Thirteenth for the next two weeks."

The look of relief that washed over his Third seats face caused Toushiro to have a brief deja vu. It was the same look he'd worn when he'd discovered that both his Captain and lieutenant were not being burned alive amongst the inferno that'd been the squad ten barracks four years ago "Thank you Sir."

Toushiro swept out of the room and headed home, the rest of the day would be family time only.


	3. Chapter 3

Hello, Sorry for the late update. It's been a very difficult couple of weeks for me and I guess i've been feeling kinda down and lacking in focus. So this chapter has come out quite slow and little bits at a time. Hope you enjoy and I promise to get the next chapter out a bit sooner. As always comments, feedback, reviews and hugs are all welcome.

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 3<p>

The next day came around too fast for Toushiro's liking and here he was, strolling through the streets of the Seireitei making the steady walk to the Senkaimon. Rangiku was trailing a few metres behind him, dragging along a rather reluctant Kotaro.

When they'd told Kotaro he would be spending the next two weeks with Ukitake, he'd been delighted. However once he'd figured out that they would both be going on the mission, he'd grown quiet and sulky.

Toushiro paused in his walking and checked his soul phone while he waited for them to catch him up. He flipped the phone open and nearly dropped it when he noticed the time, they needed to be leaving through the gate in less then ten minutes.

"Rangiku we need to get moving, we're running late!" He called back.

"How late?" She asked giving Kotaro a little tug to walk a bit faster.

Toushiro flash stepped back to her "Very late" he scooped Kotaro up and planted him on his shoulders "Hold tight little man" he felt Kotaro thread his fingers into his hair, gripping a lot tighter then necessary. He gripped one of Kotaro's ankles and with his spare hand held onto Rangiku's out stretched hand "Lets go."

They both jumped up onto the roof and began flashing and roof hopping to speed up their journey. He let go of Rangiku's hand and gripped Kotaro's other leg so he could go even faster. Despite the fact that Kotaro had been grumpy and stubborn all morning, he'd managed to get a squeal of delight out of him. It wasn't often Toushiro would take him for a shoulder shunpo ride, so when the opportunity came up, he always enjoyed it.

"Faster Daddy! Faster!" Kotaro screamed temporarily forgetting he were upset with his parents.

They reached the large open courtyard where the main Senkaimon was located and jumped down from the roof, landing beside Ukitake.

"You're cutting it a bit fine don't you think?" Ukitake greeted warmly.

"Captain Ukitake!" Rangiku bounded forward and pulled him into a hug "Its so nice to see you up and about again."

"Thank you" he wheezed lightly.

Rangiku pulled away slightly and peered up at him "I'm sorry about the short notice Captain Ukitake. Are you sure its OK?"

"Its absolutely fine dear, so don't worry. It will be no bother."

"Granddad!" Kotaro called, rushing forward and latching onto Ukitake's leg.

"Hey little fellow, I missed you" Ukitake smiled resting a hand on Kotaro's head.

Rangiku decided to give them a few minutes before kneeling down and prising Kotaro off Ukitake's leg, "Kotaro sweetie" she said turning him so he was facing her "I want you to be a good boy for Granddad Uki while me and Daddy are away."

Kotaro looked up at her sadly, his bottom lip was sticking out and beginning to tremble. Instead of saying anything he just nodded his head.

"I've packed you plenty of clean kimono's and underwear, along with your toothbrush" She paused for breath "Don't forget to brush your teeth in the morning and especially before you go to bed. Your crayons are in here too" Rangiku patted the bag she'd used for Kotaro's stuff "So you can make some nice pictures to show me when I get back" she smiled feeling a little sad "Maybe Granddad can help you with a few."

Kotaro looked away and craned his neck to look up at Ukitake, who looked down at him and winked. Satisfied Kotaro returned his attention back to his mum.

"Make sure you eat all your meals, you're only allowed two snacks a day and one of them has to be fruit OK?"

"OK Mummy" Kotaro mumbled quietly looking down at his feet.

"Good boy" She pulled him into a hug breathing in the scent of his hair "You'll be fine sweetie" Although the words were meant for Kotaro, she was telling herself the same thing too. She released him from her hug and smiled at him "I think Daddy wants to talk to you too."

She rose to her feet and stepped aside so Toushiro could have a few minutes with their son too. Toushiro crouched down in front of Kotaro and reached for his hands "Kotaro I don't really need to tell you this but make sure you do as Granddad tells you. Remember he's just recovering from being ill, so try to be considerate OK?"

Kotaro just nodded, unable to meet Toushiro's eyes. Toushiro pulled him into a hug and whispered in his ear "Somebody needs to keep an eye on Granddad while me and Mummy are away. Its an important job little man, can I count on you to do it?"

This time Kotaro was able to meet his eyes, he lifted his head and locked gazes nodding determinedly "That's my boy" Toushiro hugged him one last time "I'm going to miss you little man. I know two weeks seems like such a long time, but it will fly by, you'll see."

"Captain Hitsugaya" The Shinigami scheduled to guard the Senkaimon called over to him "The gates ready for you Sir!"

Toushiro rose to his feet "Take care son" he ruffled Kotaro's hair before looking at Ukitake "Thank you Ukitake, we'll make this up to you when we get back."

Ukitake stepped forward and held onto Kotaro's hand "Think nothing of it Toushiro, I'm happy to help you out. I am Kotaro's guardian after all."

Rangiku hugged Kotaro one last time and planted a kiss on his cheek "Bye bye sweetie" she straightened up and hugged Ukitake too.

"You two had better get moving, the cleaner is scheduled to go through after your departure, you don't want to delay much longer" Ukitake advised.

"See you in two weeks" Toushiro said turning on his heel and holding his hand out to Rangiku.

"Take care you two" Rangiku waved before joining Toushiro.

"Mummy! Daddy! Don't go!" Kotaro choked out on a sob, beginning to cry.

They could hear Ukitake trying to comfort him "Now now Kotaro, don't get yourself all worked up."

Just keep walking Rangiku told herself, forcing one foot in front of the other. Don't look back either because if she did, she would never be able to leave. Toushiro gave her hand a comforting squeeze, she knew he was finding this hard too.

They were nearing the newly materialized Senkaimon that stood waiting for them, ready to open up and admit them entry into the Dangai precipice world. Two hell butterflies that would serve as their guides through the passage were fluttering lazily a few metres away.

It was heart wrenching for her to hear Kotaro in such a distressed state. His loud wailing sobs and cries could be heard from the other side of the courtyard, making her feel guilty for causing it.

"Mummy! Daddy!" He wailed out between sobs.

They reached the butterflies and paused briefly "Are you OK Rangiku?" Toushiro asked, trying to ignore the loud screams his son was throwing their way.

"Its so hard to leave him crying like that" she replied trying to disguise the fact that her eyes were glistening with unshed tears.

"Don't feel guilty Rangiku, he will be well looked after" They both glanced over to where Kotaro was stood, looking like he were an abandoned and abused puppy that nobody loved. The tears were streaming down his face and his bottom lip was trembling. His whole body was shaking and even though Ukitake was stood next to him holding his hand for comfort, Kotaro was utterly inconsolable.

"Ready to go?" He asked, knowing if he didn't make the move soon Rangiku wouldn't want to leave at all.

"No" she sighed "But the sooner we go, the sooner we get back right?"

"Right."

They took one final look back at Kotaro and were shocked to see that he was desperately trying to wrestle his way out of Ukitake's grip, so he could get to them. They both waved one final time and Rangiku blew a kiss to Kotaro. The Senkaimon opened and they both stepped through the gate. Once they were in the passage the gate closed behind them and they both proceeded forward gripping each others hand tightly. Toushiro heard a suppressed sob from Rangiku and squeezed her hand "Its hard Rangiku, but at least we know we left him in capable hands."

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><p>Once the gate slid shut and vanished, Ukitake looked down at his young charge and couldn't help but feel sorry for him. Kotaro's face looked wet and blotchy, his eyes red and puffy, and his tiny frame shook with each sob. Ukitake crouched down and Kotaro instantly rushed forward into his arms.<p>

Ukitake wrapped an arm around his tiny shoulders and rested his spare hand on Kotaro's head "Shh everything's going to be OK Kotaro" he soothed.

He stayed like that for quite a while, soothing the small child and eventually Kotaro's sobs quietened down "Feeling a bit better?"

Kotaro looked up at him and nodded slowly "A little bit" he answered quietly.

"Here" Ukitake rummaged in his haori pockets and pulled out a spare handkerchief "Lets give your face a wipe" He gently began dabbing at Kotaro's eyes then moved down to wipe his cheeks. Once all the moisture was soaked up he then wiped Kotaro's nose "That's much better young man, we cant visit Retsu if you're all upset now, can we?"

Kotaro's face brightened a little bit "We're seeing Gran-Gran?"

Ukitake smiled warmly "My medication is ready to be picked up from the Fourth. Normally I would send somebody to fetch it for me, but I figured the walk would do us both good."

"And Gran-Gran will be there" Kotaro concluded nodding his little head.

"So you don't mind a slight detour on the way to my division then?" Ukitake asked kindly.

Kotaro shook his head "Not if I get to see Gran-Gran."

Ukitake picked the bag up Rangiku had used for Kotaro's things and tossed it over his shoulder, then he bent down and scooped Kotaro up. He was pleased Kotaro had calmed down and stopped crying, however he could still see in the boy's eyes that he was feeling sad "OK lets go and see Retsu then Kotaro."

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><p>An hour later Ukitake arrived at the Fourth division. The walk there had been a rather quiet one and even though he'd taken it steady, he found himself to be quite breathless. As he climbed to the top of the steps he took a moment before entering the Infirmary to catch his breath and clear his light head. His recent bout of illness had really taken it out of him this time and it would be several weeks he guessed, before he would be feeling normal again.<p>

Kotaro lifted his head off Ukitake's shoulder and peered at him quizzically "Why you stopped Granddad?"

"Just having a minute Kotaro" He wheezed lightly, but smiled all the same. That was the first time Kotaro had spoken since he'd began the trek to the Fourth. Usually the tiny boy would be all upbeat and energetic, however this time Kotaro just clung onto his shoulder looking utterly miserable.

Ukitake stepped through into the main entrance and peered around at the few Shinigami populating the area. He saw no sign of Retsu, but he did notice Isane at the opposite side of the room, supervising two new recruits. Isane looked up and smiled at him, which he returned with one of his own.

He quickly scanned with his senses and came across Unohana's comforting presence a few corridors away in her office. No doubt working through the latest reports and patient files. He sent his awareness out towards her, briefly wrapping his energy around her like a hug, to let her know he were there. He felt a little flicker of response and he returned his awareness back to where he stood.

Unohana had always told him to come straight to her office whenever he visited, however he never liked to appear impolite so as always he walked over to the check in desk to politely ask if she wasn't too busy to see him.

Isane looked up as he approached "Good Morning Captain Ukitake, how are you today?"

"I'm quite well, thank you Isane" He replied pleasantly.

"Are you here for your medication?" She asked helpfully.

"I am, however I do have an ulterior motive" He began glancing at Kotaro, who was still snuggled up on his shoulder looking miserable "Would it be OK if I dropped in to see Retsu?"

"Its fine Captain Ukitake" Isane replied "Captain Unohana is in her office at the moment, feel free to drop by."

"Thank you Isane" He turned to look at Kotaro "Did you hear that young man?"

"Hear what?" Kotaro asked sleepily. Clearly his early morning crying fit had tired him out somewhat "Can we see Gran-Gran?"

"Isane said its fine for us to see Retsu." Ukitake thanked Isane once more and bid her goodbye. Kotaro gave Isane a tiny wave and copied Ukitake by saying goodbye, "Bye bye sarn-sarn." Ukitake grinned, Kotaro still struggled to properly announce peoples names. So he usually called people the closest thing he could manage, that sounded right to him.

Ukitake strolled down the familiar corridors of the Fourth and in no time reached Unohana's office. He gave the door a light tap before sliding it open and peeking inside "Retsu?"

"Gran-Gran!"

Unohana looked up from from the report she were reading through and smiled at her two visitors "Juushiro and little Kotaro too."

Kotaro squirmed in Ukitake's arms trying to reach Unohana "Hang on young man, I'm going to drop you if you're not careful."

Unohana rose from her chair and glided across the room gracefully. As soon as she was within reach, Kotaro threw out his arms and locked them around her neck hugging her tightly.

Unohana got a better hold on Kotaro and Ukitake released his hold on the squirming boy "Well now, someone is eager to see me today" Kotaro pulled back a little so he could look at her and she caught the sad expression on his face "And where's that lovely smile of yours gone?"

"Mummy and Daddy left me behind" Kotaro wailed out beginning to cry again.

Unohana began comforting Kotaro by rocking him from side to side and rubbing his back in soothing circles. She looked over to Ukitake and noticed the light sheen of sweat on his forehead and his breathlessness "Perhaps its time I took a break from paperwork. I'll make us some tea."

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><p>Nanao signed off the last report and placed her brush down. She stretched her arms above her head and worked the knots out of her neck and shoulders.<p>

"Finally" she sighed tiredly.

It'd taken her a good portion of two days but she'd finally managed to clear the recent backlog of paperwork that seemed to have built up over the last couple of weeks. Shunsui had dropped by the office around lunch time and made her take a break and eat some lunch. He would have been content to stay and nap on the couch for the rest of the day, however she found his presence distracting so she'd been forced to banish him from the office.

Naturally he refused to go quietly and it wasn't until she'd promised not to work too late, did he decide to go and leave her to it.

Other then the usual interruptions of paperwork being delivered and squad members needing signatures for whatever reason, the day had been pretty quiet and she'd ploughed through the paperwork. As always a woman on a mission.

She rose from her seat glancing at the clock and wasn't too surprised to see that it was well past midnight. What she did find surprising though were the fact that Shunsui hadn't shown up hours ago to cart her away from the office. Which meant one thing, he was probably out drinking somewhere in a bar.

She flicked the office lights off and locked the door behind her. Once she were outside she quickly scanned the usual places for any sign of her Captains presence. He wasn't at the Thirteenth with Ukitake, but she could feel Captain Unohana's and little Kotaro's energy at Ukitake's home.

He wasn't in his quarters or any of the usual places inside the Seireitei, so she extended her senses further and came across his slightly dulled energy close to the bar he frequently visited.

She brushed her energy against his, giving him a prod but felt nothing to suggest he was aware of her. Grumbling she set off at a fast shunpo pace making the long detour out towards the bar. Usually if he failed to notice her prod, it generally meant he'd drank himself into a drunken heap on the floor.

As tired as she felt she couldn't just leave him to stumble his way home, if he was even capable of stumbling home. She were pretty sure he would be out cold.

Once she reached the bar district situated inside the first district, she dropped out of shunpo and began walking the rest of the way keeping her eyes peeled for a flash of pink haori.

Many times in the past Shunsui had warned her not to come fetch him if he were out drinking in the Rukongai districts late at night. He didn't mind so much while she were inside the Seireitei, however out here Shinigami were met with distrust and quite often attacked. Which coincidently was the reason why Nanao would venture out here. To make sure he would get back safely.

She walked purposefully down the street, senses fully alert to everything and everyone around her. If anyone did try to randomly attack her, she would be ready with a kido spell faster then you could blink.

She always felt a little uncomfortable walking down this particular street whenever she came out here. It was quite narrow with dark alleyways dotted at regular intervals between the establishments, and it was common to see drunk people slumped over and sprawled out littering both sides of the street.

She was just passing by a bar when a drunken man stumbled out of the door and bumped into her, causing her to stumble slightly herself. The man mumbled an apology and tried to bow, but ended up tumbling to the ground and landing in a heap at her feet. Usually she would have stopped to help but she wanted to find Shunsui quickly and get out of there. So she stepped over the drunk and carried on in her search, the bar Shunsui usually visited wasn't far now. In fact she were pretty sure it was just around the next corner.

Three men turned around the corner she was heading for, joking loudly amongst themselves and laughing raucously. She scooted as far to the inside of the street as she could to give them room, walking swiftly and looking past them to the corner.

"Hey there!" One of them called as she passed by.

She automatically glanced over her shoulder and saw that one of the men had paused and the other two were slowing down.

"Where you going sugar?" The closet slurred, a heavy set man with dark hair.

She quickly looked away and walked faster towards the corner. She could hear them laughing loudly behind her.

"Hey wait!" The same man called after her again, she kept going choosing to ignore him and rounded the corner. She could still hear them chortling behind her.

The street she were on now, was even darker and narrower then the last one. She hurried down it at a brisk pace and once she was a good distance away from the corner, she quickly glanced back over her shoulder. To her annoyance the man that'd tried to talk to her, was walking quietly twenty feet behind her. A chill that had nothing to do with the weather made her shiver.

Nanao listened intently to the man's quiet footsteps, which were much too quiet when compared to the boisterous noise he'd been making before, and it didn't sound like he were speeding up, or getting any closer.

She took a deep calming breath and began flexing her fingers, loosening them up in preparation should she need to use Kido. She didn't know yet if he were following her intentionally or not. She continued to walk as quickly as she could, while focusing on the left hand turn she needed, which was only a few meters away from her now.

She'd only taken two more steps when another figure came stumbling into the narrow street from an alleyway to the right a few paces ahead of her, essentially blocking her path and trapping her.

She slowed right down and tensed up, the last thing she needed was a blockade. The footfalls behind her seemed to have stopped so she risked a quick glance over her shoulder and saw that the man had slowed right down too.

"There you are!" The booming voice of the stocky, dark haired man shattered the intense quiet and made her jump. In the darkness of the street, it seemed like the man was looking past her.

"Yeah man," The other man who'd stumbled into the street ahead of her, replied back loudly making her jump again "I just took a little detour."

Nanao flicked her wrist and produced a small ball of kido as the man before her gradually drew closer to her, while the man behind closed the gap between them.

"Stand aside" She ordered in her sharp lieutenants voice, sounding strong and fearless.

"Don't be like that sugar," the man behind her called, laughing raucously again.

"Yeah we'll take good care of ya baby," the man before her chuckled drunkenly.

Nanao adjusted her stance so she were standing sideways, better to see the two men and feeling slightly better knowing a wall was behind her. The only problem being, she were still sandwich between the two men and her only way out of this would be to force her way past. But if she made a move past one of the men, the other would surely make a move too. Talk about being caught between a rock and a hard place.

She enlarged the small kido ball in her hands and raised her spiritual pressure in warning. The man that'd been following her raised his hand at her laughing. Nanao felt an odd force slam into her, like someone had thrown a bucket of ice cold water over her, immediately disorientating her. Her senses felt hazy and it literally felt like the world had been turned on its head.

Once the strange sensation had passed, she found that her kido ball had vanished. She quickly tried to produce another one, and to her horror, she was unable to. Even her spiritual pressure seemed uncontrollable for the time being.

She quickly glanced between the two men and felt her head spin. Both of them were grinning at her and the one that'd been following her began to close the distance between them.

Nanao caught movement out of the corner of her eye and glimpsed a flash of pink. The next thing she knew the man that'd blocked her path dropped to the floor in a crumpled heaped.

She heard the crackle of a kido spell being formed, and felt it rush past her. The blue orb of lightening hit the other man squarely in the chest and threw him backwards, into the stone wall.

It was amazing how instantaneously the little fear she'd felt vanished, amazing how suddenly the feeling of security washed over her, as soon as she caught that first glimpse of pink.

Nanao turned to face him and was about to say something when Shunsui grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her closer to him. He tossed her unceremoniously over his shoulder and flashed stepped them out of there.

Once the eastern gate of the Seireitei came into view just a little ahead of them Shunsui slowed down to a halt. He gently placed her back down on her feet but kept a firm hold on her waist "Are you OK Nanao-chan?"

"I'm fine" she lied, whatever that strange sensation was that'd washed over her, had left her senses completely messed up and truthfully she felt quite disorientated, "You can let me go now."

Shunsui moved his hands off her waist and allowed her to step away from him, however she managed to take one step before losing her balance and stumbling forward. She braced for the impact which never came "Nanao-chan, let me help you OK."

She allowed him to scoop her up into his arms. Any slight movement she made caused her vision to swirl sickeningly. She tried to push her awareness out but was met by a solid wall of static. Her fingers were tingling painfully and when she reached her hand up to check them over, she saw way too many digits to be considered natural.

So much for retrieving Shunsui and making sure he got home safely. Instead he were the one dragging her home.

"Are you hurt at all?" Shunsui asked gazing down at her "Do you want me to take you to the Fourth?"

"No, just take me home" she replied a little sharp.

Shunsui stopped and looked down at her "Are you mad at me?" he asked sounding a little confused at her sharp tone.

She took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly "I'm tired. Its been a long day" she looked up at him and as soon as their eyes met, a strange feeling of repulsion came over her. The feeling of his arms wrapped around her made her skin crawl, the sound of his voice felt like nails on a chalkboard. Even his usual scent made her feel nauseous. Confused by the sudden change she quickly looked away again "I think I just need a good nights sleep," she said quietly trying not to cringe.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked resuming his walk back to their division. His usually smooth voice was grating on her nerves.

"NO!" She snapped. Why did the man feel the need to talk so damn much.

"Nanao" he began much quieter then before, his voice held a hint of hurt "I'm just trying to help."

'I know' she thought silently, but for some strange reason she couldn't stand being around him, his whole being felt wrong to her and it repulsed her.


	4. Chapter 4

Hello! As promised here's the next Chapter. Thank you to the people who left a review ^_^ If you've taken the time to read my other story then you will know that nothing ever goes smoothly in my stories and I always have to pick on someone and make their life hell throughout the story (See if you can guess who this time) =) Happy Reading.

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 4<p>

Dark storm clouds loomed over the busy city like a giant blanket, giving the whole place a dull, miserable feeling. The rain had let up ten minutes ago, however Toushiro was convinced it wouldn't last for long. He looked down from the skyscraper he were currently perched on, watching the many people down below going about their daily business.

Closing his eyes he used his other senses to do a sweep of the surrounding area, trying to pick out any other energy signatures that may belong to the Hollow they were trying to track down.

The report Yamamoto had given him to read through had been rather short and vague. Apparently the Shinigami who'd brought the incidents to their attention had been relying on guesswork and had failed to find any solid evidence to back up their claims. Although he must admit it was strange for whole trains of people to meet their demise and not have a few souls left lingering afterwards.

If it was a Hollow in the subway tunnels using the trains as a buffet table, then he doubted they would find anything out here.

He opened his eyes and looked over his shoulder at Rangiku, who was absorbed with checking her soul phone.

"Anything interesting yet Rangiku?"

She looked up at him and shook her head "Not yet, but we should be receiving the co-ordinates of the subway station any minute."

Two seconds after the words left her mouth her phone beeped loudly, Rangiku flipped the phone open and Toushiro felt curious when he saw her frowning "Is that the co-ordinates?"

"No..." she pouted "But it is a message from Captain Ukitake," he watched as her eyes quickly whizzed from side to side reading the message.

"Is everything all right?"

She looked up at him and smiled "Yes everything seems fine. Kotaro was a bit upset when we left but he settled down... Oh.."

"What is it?" Toushiro asked stepping over to her.

"I forgot to pack Yori" she began tapping away on the phones keypad while writing the message and talking aloud "Check... Kotaro's... room.. if.. not... there... try.. the.. bathroom..Thanks Xx."

Toushiro stepped away from Rangiku smiling and resumed his previous position. Yori was the blue stuffed dragon he'd brought Kotaro when he were first born. His son couldn't pronounce Hyourimaru so he'd settled with Yori for short. It happened to be Kotaro's favourite thing in the whole world and he needed him to sleep at night.

Rangiku's phone beeped again a few seconds later "Toshi its the co-ordinates" she walked over to his side and passed the phone to him.

"Great" He looked down at the small screen and saw that the subway was situated a few miles south of their current location, he was about to hand it back when the phone bleeped again. Briefly glancing at the display he saw that it was another message, this time from Nanao. He handed the phone back "You're popular today."

"Ooh its from Nanao.." She read the message and sighed loudly, when she caught Toushiro looking at her she added "Sorry Toshi but this is girl talk."

"Sounds serious," he replied sarcastically, "Come on lets get moving Rangiku," with that said he ran and flashed onto the roof of the next tall skyscraper, heading south towards the Subway.

Rangiku allowed him to go ahead before turning her focus back to her phone and started typing '_How can you just go off somebody with one look? Makes no sense! Have you seen him yet today? Maybe you're fine now and it was just your system all messed up? Let me know Xx'_

Rangiku sighed, snapped her phone shut and pocketed it before taking off after Toushiro. She would call Nanao and get the full run down on what happened later. She hoped whatever problems they were having would only be temporary. Nanao and Shunsui were perfect for each other and she secretly hoped they would have a child too someday, preferably a little girl so Kotaro would have a little girlfriend. So cute! It would be awful if they split up before that happened.

Rangiku felt Toushiro's spiritual pressure rise in annoyance and was forced to abandon that train of thought and focus on catching up with him. They did after all have a mission to do here.

* * *

><p>'<em>How can you just go off somebody with one look? Makes no sense! Have you seen him yet today? Maybe you're fine now and it was just your system all messed up? Let me know Xx'<em>

Nanao flipped the soul phone shut and placed it back in her desk drawer. Maybe Rangiku was right. Maybe it was just her system that were all messed up last night and that's why she reacted the way she did. She knew she loved Shunsui and last night he was being the man she knew him to be, helpful and caring. Yet she couldn't stop her mind wondering back to that brief moment when their eyes met and that strange sensation washed over her. It was just that everything about him...

No! She told herself. She wasn't going to allow herself to keep dwelling on it. Like Rangiku said maybe she were fine now. The only way to know for sure would be to find Shunsui and see how she felt around him.

Yet that thought was completely unappealing. What if she reacted the same way again? What then? She knew for now it would be best to avoid him, but that would be impossible. Shunsui had the unique ability to chase her down anywhere.

Heck she wouldn't be surprised if he showed up here in the office any minute. It were getting close to lunchtime and he would probably be waking up and rushing over here to check on her.

She pulled a sheet of paperwork towards her, in a bid to distract herself from her thoughts. As she began filling in the form she flexed the fingers on her left hand. It was still painful from the night before and her fingertips felt like they were vibrating. She hadn't attempted any kido spells yet because she knew it would cause further pain to her main hand.

The figures on the form in front of her blurred together. She took off her glasses and began rubbing her temples, attempting to rid herself of the dull ache beginning to form in her head.

She slumped back into her chair and leant her head back against the head rest staring at the ceiling. What would she do if she truly couldn't stand being around Shunsui now? That thought alone made her heart ache, it also made her feel a little angry too. Just what did that man do to her? He completely nullified her kido, destabilized her spiritual pressure and messed up her senses. With just a simple flick of his wrist. And worst of all, from the moment she'd stepped foot in that narrow street she'd felt oddly vulnerable. It was embarrassing she was a lieutenant damn it. It was strange, even her mood had been affected, she couldn't control her mood and poor Shunsui had been on the receiving end of it. A poor way to thank him for helping her back there.

'But you wouldn't have been out there in the first place if it wasn't for him though' a little voice said inside her head.

She told that little voice to shut the hell up.

Nanao sat back up again and picked up her writing brush, returning back to the form she'd started. For now she would just focus on the task at hand and worry about Shunsui when he actually turned up.

"Nanao-chan" Came the sing song voice, before her vision went black "Guess who?"

Nanao took a deep breath and counted back from ten in her head. How had she failed to notice his arrival? She wasn't ready for this. "Captain will you kindly remove your hands please. I'm trying to work."

"Nobody can fool my Nanao-chan" The hands moved away from her eyes and came to rest on her shoulders instead. "You're so tense," Shunsui pointed out while beginning to massage the knots out of her shoulders.

Nanao let out the breath she wasn't aware she'd been holding, there really hadn't been anything to worry about. Here he was, touching her, talking to her and it felt fine. His familiar scent wrapped around her like a blanket and she relaxed instantly.

He peppered her neck with soft kisses and worked his way up to her ear, nibbling her earlobe "How are you feeling today?" His voice rumbled in her ear, before moving his lips away and travelling down her jawline heading for her throat.

Nanao moaned and tossed her head back to allow him better access "Better then what I did" she mumbled distracted by the feel of his lips trailing down her throat.

She meant it too. His touch and his voice felt wonderful, it felt right she thought with relief.

Then another thought entered her mind 'But you felt all right last night, before you looked him in the eye.'

She automatically closed her eyes, it were true. She were fine in his arms until she met his eyes and that's when that strange feeling of hatred washed over her. Dare she look him in the eye and risk it happening again? Just as everything seemed to be feeling right again.

She felt his lips leave her skin and heard him move from behind her, as he perched himself on the edge of her desk "Nanao-chan's not wearing her glasses" she felt his warm palm come to rest against her cheek "So pretty, do I get to see her beautiful eyes too?"

She could feel his warm breath on her face as he leant in to plant a kiss on her forehead, his warm lips lingering a moment before he pulled back again "Nanao-chan?" He questioned.

"Mmm?" She replied keeping her eyes closed, she could sense his hesitation.

"Are you happy Nanao-chan?" He wavered slightly "With me... With us?"

She peeked her eyes open and his firm chest met her eyes. Blinking a few times her gaze began to slowly travel upwards. Past his chest, up to his throat. Then up to his strong stubbly jawline. She skimmed over his soft lips, past his nose and finally settled on his grey eyes which were full of warmth and concern.

When she stared into his warm eyes and that awful feeling from the night before didn't occur but instead a rush of warmth and love enveloped her, she knew instantly she'd been worrying over nothing.

She rose to her feet and stepped in between his knees, wrapping her arms around his middle and breathing in his scent deeply "Of course I am. I love you."

He wrapped his strong arms around her pulling her closer and rested his cheek against the top of her head "I thought you were mad at me last night, because it was so late and you went all the way out there for me," she could hear his voice rumbling pleasantly in his chest, "And then those guys," he added rather darkly.

"What happened Nanao-chan? Those two guys shouldn't stand a chance against you. Yet when I caught up with you.. It was like you were hesitating and dare I say it, a little bit... scared? That's not you at all."

"One of them did something. It completely messed my senses up, along with everything else. It nullified my kido and disrupted my spiritual pressure. I was disorientated."

Shunsui pulled away and looked down at her "Nanao maybe you should get checked over at the Fourth. Just in case."

She shook her head sighing "Honestly I feel fine."

Shunsui hooked a finger under her chin and tilted her head up so she would meet his eye "All right. But I want you to promise me if you start to feel off, or anything strange happens, then you tell me or at least visit the Fourth."

He moved his hand away from her face and reached down for her left hand and wrapped his large warm hand around it. She tried to hide her wince as pain began to flare in her palm, spreading down to her wrist and fingertips.

Shunsui lifted her hand up to his lips and planted a small kiss on each of her fingers. Nanao's fingers tingled painfully and all of a sudden a crackle of static had Shunsui pulling away and dropping her hand.

Nanao twirled her wrist and flexed her fingers to rid her digits of the sensation.

"What was that Nanao-chan?" Shunsui asked looking puzzled.

"I don't know, its never happened before," she looked down at her hand while she continued to flex her sore fingers.

"Look, I'm off to see Juu, I told him I'd drop by today to see him. I just wanted to check on you first," Shunsui pushed away from the desk and straightened up "Do you want to come with me? I think you could do with the afternoon off."

Nanao glanced around the office. She'd been in here a good portion of the previous night and she'd managed to get caught up on all the paperwork. Plus she were feeling tired and a little out of sorts still. She met Shunsui's eye and nodded "I think I could do with the afternoon off too," she couldn't help but smile at the look of delight dancing in his eyes.

He held his elbow out and she hooked her arm through it and allowed him to guide her out of the office.

* * *

><p>"Granddad!"<p>

Ukitake looked up from the report he'd been reading through and looked over to where Kotaro's voice came from. He held a hand up to shield his eyes from the sun, he was currently sat out on his veranda while Kotaro played explorer in his vast garden.

He couldn't see Kotaro but he could hear a poorly disguised giggle coming from behind a large leafy bush just off to the right. It was an odd game they were playing and from what Ukitake had gathered, it was his job to spot Kotaro in his hiding place, or while he was moving onto the next. Once he'd reached a new hiding place undetected, Kotaro would call out to him again. The only problem being, he was losing, badly. The kid was so damn fast.

"Granddad!"

This time his little voice came from behind a statue way over to his left. Ukitake smiled and placed the report down. This time he would catch him for sure. He glanced over to the statue and saw a white tuft of hair sticking up. He kept looking at that little tuft, watching for any sign of movement.

Kotaro's head bobbed down and out of sight, Ukitake was about to yell 'FOUND YOU!' as soon as he stepped out from behind the statue but..

"Granddad!"

Ukitake whipped his head back over to the right as Kotaro called out to him again, he could hear the boy giggling behind the large bush again over on the right.

He was as swift as the wind, Ukitake was just wondering how the kid managed to do it when an idea popped into his head.

"Hey Kotaro!" He called loudly.

"Yes Granddad?" Kotaro answered peeping over the bush and smiling innocently.

"How about trying to get this cup" he held up his empty teacup to show Kotaro, before placing it down on the wooden decking next to him "Without me spotting you. Think you can do it?"

"Hmm maybe" Kotaro answered a little unsure "Wouldn't you be cheating if you can see me?"

"How about I close my eyes for ten seconds. Would that make it a bit more fair?"

Kotaro folded his arms across his chest just like Toushiro would, thinking about it, "That's still cheating Granddad" he pouted stubbornly, just like Rangiku.

"OK how about twenty seconds?" Ukitake suggested.

Kotaro grinned "Deal."

"Right then, I'll count to twenty with my eyes closed. You try and get the cup within that time and get back to your hiding place, without me seeing you. If you do it before then just shout out OK?"

Kotaro nodded and crouched back down behind the bush.

"Ready Kotaro?" Ukitake asked.

"Yes Granddad!" Kotaro's voice came from behind the statue on the left this time, Ukitake quirked an eyebrow in surprise.

He closed his eyes and focused on listening, just because he couldn't see Kotaro, didn't mean he couldn't hear him. "OK... One...Two.."

"Granddad!" Kotaro called before breaking out into a fit of laughter.

Ukitake snapped his eyes open and found Kotaro standing back by the bush, brandishing his tea cup with a wide cheeky grin on his face. He automatically looked down where he'd left his cup and was surprised to see it gone.

"How do you do that?" He called completely amazed.

"How does he do what?" Shunsui asked from behind, stepping out onto the veranda.

"Shh" Ukitake held his hand up to silence his friend "Sit down Shunsui and just watch."

"Erm OK then" his friend replied puzzled.

"Hello Captain Ukitake" Nanao greeted as she walked out the door too and settled down next to Shunsui.

"Whose there Granddad?" Kotaro asked poking his head above the bush.

"Shunsui and Nanao are here to visit us young man" Ukitake replied fixing his gaze on Kotaro's hiding place "How about you return my cup again, so I can fix us all a drink?"

Kotaro ducked down again and when he answered he was back behind the statue "Uncle Shun-shun and Auntie Nan-nan?"

"Hey kiddo" Shunsui greeted a little surprised. "Juu wasn't he over there a second ago?" He asked in an undertone.

"Yes, its been puzzling me just how he manages it" Ukitake admitted "Been trying to figure it out for the last hour."

"Cant you just follow his energy with your senses?" Nanao asked.

"Auntie Nan-nan!" Kotaro called from beside the koi pond this time "That's cheating!"

"Yeah Nanao-chan, that's cheating" Shunsui repeated childishly.

"Watch him closely" Ukitake instructed "Are you going to come and say hello to our guests Kotaro?"

"OK Granddad" he shouted back before ducking behind the large trunk of a tree.

Ukitake, Shunsui and Nanao were all watching the tree trunk intently, waiting for Kotaro to emerge from either side.

"Here's your cup Granddad" came his little voice from directly behind them.

They all looked around together completely shocked to see Kotaro standing there holding out Ukitake's cup, grinning innocently.

Ukitake took the offered cup "Thank you, young man."

"Auntie Nan-nan!" Kotaro bounded over to Nanao happily "Come see the fishies, I saw a big one."

Nanao smiled and got to her feet, Kotaro's boundless energy was so infectious "How big Kotaro?"

Kotaro threw his little arms wide "HUGE!"

Ukitake chuckled as Kotaro grabbed Nanao's hand and began dragging her away towards the koi pond. He glanced over to Shunsui and notice the sombre look on his face "Something troubling you Shunsui?"

Shunsui glanced over to Nanao. Ukitake followed his gaze "Ahh I see Shunsui, its about Nanao."

"Juu, does Nanao-chan seem a bit.. off to you?"

"Off how?" Ukitake looked over to the pond watching Nanao play with Kotaro.

"Long story short, she came out to the bar last night for me. I was just about to leave when I felt her pressure spike for a moment. I hurried to reach her and when I found her she'd been cornered by two guys."

"Shunsui, Nanao has proven herself more then capable many times in the past, I'm sure she was in no real danger. Two guys wouldn't stand a chance-"

"I know that Juu" Shunsui interrupted "That's not the issue here."

"Then what is?"

"They did something to her Juu, messed with her spiritual pressure. I've never seen her so un-Nanao-ish, before. When I tried to help her she acted like she hated me."

"Mmm, did you take her to the Fourth?" Ukitake asked "Maybe ask Retsu to check her over?"

"I suggested that, but she wouldn't go. She said she felt fine."

"I see" Ukitake tapped his finger against his lips contemplating. He watched Nanao as she chased Kotaro around the koi pond, on the outside she looked fine to him. But like Shunsui said, her spiritual pressure felt unsettled. It wasn't obvious if you weren't looking for it. If Shunsui hadn't mentioned it, he certainly wouldn't have noticed anything different. "Well if she feels fine, I wouldn't worry too much Shunsui."

"But?" Shunsui prompted "There is a but right?"

Ukitake nodded "But keep a close eye on her. Just in case."

Shunsui clapped Ukitake's shoulder "I knew I wasn't being paranoid."

"This time Shunsui, I don't think you're being paranoid."

They fell into silence for a few seconds until Shunsui spoke up "Speaking of Retsu, I heard that she spent the night here with you again."

Ukitake sighed "And your point is?"

"You seem to be feeling better today. A lot better in fact, makes me think some special type of healing went on between you two" Shunsui nudged him with his elbow playfully "Eh, know what I mean."

"You're impossible Shun."

There was a tremendous splash and a loud squeal from Kotaro, the two of them looked over to the pond and grinned at the sight. Both Nanao and Kotaro were dripping wet from head to toe.

Kotaro came bounding over to them laughing loudly "Granddad.. Huge fishy went splash!"

Nanao joined them a few seconds later, trying to wipe her glasses dry "I swear Captain Ukitake, you've trained those koi to do that whenever someone gets too close."

Ukitake smiled warmly "How about we go inside and have that cup of tea now" he rose to his feet and scooped up Kotaro "And get you dried off" he added feeling Kotaro's wet tunic soaking into his haori.

Shunsui stepped aside so Ukitake could walk inside, then he turned to Nanao "After you Nanao-chan" their eyes met and Shunsui felt the slightest change in her energy. Her eyes narrowed slightly and Shunsui could have sworn he saw a brief flash of anger cross over her features, before she looked away again and followed Ukitake back into the house.

Shunsui hovered a few seconds longer then necessary trying to process what just happened, not really sure whether he imagined it or not.


	5. Chapter 5

Hello back with another Chapter all ready! Thank you to the people who have left a review so far ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 5<p>

"Is this the place Toshi?" Rangiku asked pointing at the shabby sign indicating the main entrance to the subway station.

"I guess so," he replied somewhat distracted by the uncomfortable feel of his Gigai.

"Don't fidget so much, you'll make it feel worse," Rangiku grabbed onto his wrist and began dragging him across the deserted street towards the entrance "Come on."

She dropped his hand once they reached the entrance and they both descended the steps leading down to the underground station. Contrary to the quiet street above, down here they found it full of late afternoon commuters all crammed together waiting in one long line for the ticket booth, or waiting on the platform for the right train to arrive.

A tall man obviously running late rushed past them bumping into Toushiro's shoulder "Hey watch it kid" he yelled before disappearing into the thick throng of people.

"Kid... How rude!" He grumbled loudly, massaging his shoulder. That little bump had made his Gigai feel all uncomfortable again.

"Toshi!" Rangiku called out.

"Rangiku?" He looked over his shoulder but couldn't see her, she were there only a few seconds ago. All he could see now was a wall of people surrounding him.

He spotted Rangiku's fiery hair and made to go over to her, but a hand clamped down firmly on his shoulder. He was about to yank himself free when the grip tightened and the person it belonged to started herding him away "Hey! Let go!" He shouted angrily.

"Its all right young man, just come this way and we'll find your parents," The hand it turned out, belonged to a big burly security guard "DOES THIS KID BELONG TO ANYONE?" The man yelled above the noise of the crowd.

He began squirming to break the death grip on his shoulder "I'm NOT lost and I'm NOT a kid dammit!" He yelled angrily.

"Hey settle down kid, I'm only trying to help you," The security guard smiled easily.

"HELP MY ASS! LET ME GO DAMMIT!"

"The manners of children these days. So disgraceful" A little old lady tutted disapprovingly as he was dragged past.

He threw a look over his shoulder looking for any sign of Rangiku, just as the security guard was dragging him through the ticket barrier he caught a glimpse of her grinning wickedly at him. His face turned crimson, whether from embarrassment or anger he wasn't really sure. Rangiku winked at him and gave him the thumbs up. Huh!

The security guard dragged him along until he reached a small booth with a desk and and various screens with images from the various security cameras dotted about the place.

"Now young man, could you tell me your name please and I can put a call out for your parents."

Toushiro folded his arms across his chest and glared at the man.

"Don't be shy now-" The security guard was cut off by a loud scream coming from the ticket line. Toushiro closed his eyes scowling when he recognised the source of the commotion.

"TOSHI! TOSHIIIII!" Yes, that was Rangiku all right..

"You wait here young man, and don't move!" The security guard warned before heading back to the commotion.

"I'VE LOST MY BOY! SOMEBODY'S ABDUCTED HIM!" Rangiku screamed loudly "WHERE IS HE!" She wailed adding a little sob at the end to sound realistic.

"Calm down Miss," He heard the security guard say, trying to calm the hysterical woman before him "I have your son back here."

"IT WAS YOU!" She bellowed loudly "You abducted my little Toushi-pops!"

Toushiro clenched his fists tightly and cringe, repeating over and over in his mind 'I mustn't hit my wife.. I mustn't hit my wife...

"No Miss!" The security guard held his hands up defensively "I just found the poor little tyke. He's back here."

"Where!" Rangiku demanded clearly distraught.

"Just around here Miss" The security guard opened the ticket barrier to let her pass through.

As soon as Rangiku was clear of the barrier she sprinted down the platform and charged at him, arms wide with a fake look of relief plastered all over her face "TOSHI!"

If he wasn't feeling so angry and humiliated, he would probably have been quite impressed with her acting skills. Hell she'd even managed to produce some realistic tears which he could see streaming down her face.

"See Miss" The security guard had caught up with her now "He's safe and sound.

Rangiku engulfed him in a suffocating hug "Aww my little Toushi-pops is all safe" she pulled away from him and pinched his cheek "Don't ever get separated from me like that again OK" She scolded him before pulling him back into another hug "I was so sick with worry."

The security guard cleared his throat loudly "Erm Miss?"

Rangiku turned on him and glared "I'm trying to comfort my son! Cant you see that he's been traumatized?"

Toushiro's death glare said otherwise.

The security guard scratch the back of his head "I'll just leave you to it" he said sheepishly, before beating a hasty retreat.

As soon as he was out of earshot Rangiku released Toushiro who promptly turned on his heel and walked away in a huff.

Rangiku winced, she hoped he wasn't too upset with her for what she just did. She watch as he walked over to a much quieter area of the platform and slumped down on a seat folding his arms across his chest.

She decided to give him a minute or two to calm down. Still that unexpected commotion had gotten them both past the ticket barrier and for free, so it wasn't all bad.

* * *

><p>Ten minutes later and after looking around the platform area, Rangiku decided to make her way back to Toushiro. She walked briskly down the platform, clutching a paper map of the subway tightly in her hand.<p>

As she neared the seating area where she'd left Toushiro, she could see his distinctive white mop bowed over slightly as he tapped away grumpily on his phone. Every now and then he would pause and tug at his shirt collar in irritation.

"Toshi?" She questioned uncertainly as she slid onto the bench next to him. She noticed the frown etched on his face and figured some damage control was in order "Look, I'm sorry about what happened back there."

Toushiro pulled his attention away from his soul phone and seemed surprised to find her next to him. He sighed heavily "Its OK, I'm not mad at you."

"Really?" She asked a little taken back.

"Really" he began fidgeting with his collar again "Although if I see that damn security guard again.." his hand moved up and began tugging at his shoulder "I'll tear him a new one."

Rangiku burst out laughing at that comment.

"What's so funny?" He questioned grumpily.

Rangiku just shook her head giggling "Nothing. Its just been awhile since I last saw this side of you."

"What side?" He rolled his eyes annoyed.

"The side that gets all grumpy and indignant whenever somebody mistakes you for a kid."

"Yeah well, I guess I just got used to being treated like an adult these last four years."

"Toushiro.." Rangiku began in a soft voice.

"Rangiku" he interrupted "I don't know whether its because I came very close to dying just trying to protect and keep you safe, or because I married you and then Kotaro came along. But somewhere amongst all that, people stopped treating me like a child and started treating me like an adult. I'm content with how my life is in the Soul Society." He began tugging at his collar once more, "And then I come here and all people see is some short pathetic kid."

"Who cares what a bunch of humans think?" Rangiku smiled and pulled him into a hug, squishing his face between her breasts. Instead of struggling like he usually would, he just allowed himself to relax into her natural pillow.

Two middle aged business women in suits strolled by eyeing them disapprovingly and pointing in disgust.

Rangiku just snorted and shoved his head in deeper "I don't know Toshi, you think being called a kid is bad. I have to put up with being called a cradle robber. Humans are so shallow in the Living World."

Toushiro pulled away and began fidgeting with his gigai once again which greatly annoyed Rangiku.

"OK, seriously! What is the deal with all this fidgeting Toshi?"

"I don't know" he growled in annoyance "This thing feels so damn uncomfortable. It felt fine the last time I wore it."

"Which was when exactly?" She pouted.

"I don't know, two years maybe?" He guessed.

"Hmm" Rangiku hummed tapping a long finger against her lips "Take it off Toshi."

"What?" He asked slightly confused.

"Your gigai, just take it off a minute" Rangiku persisted.

"Fine," Toushiro got to his feet and popped a soul candy into his mouth. As soon as he separated from his gigai he felt instant relief, "That feels better already."

"Yeah I can imagine" Rangiku replied scrutinising him and his gigai "Its too small for you. Look."

Toushiro glanced behind him at his gigai and immediately notice that he were a good head taller then it.

Rangiku beamed at him "Does that make you feel a bit better. Apparently you're not as short as what you thought."

He just sighed and turned away glancing around him. There were a group of men in their mid twenties he guessed standing a few metres away ogling Rangiku. The two business women from earlier were pointing at them still and whispering behind their hands.

He clenched his teeth tightly together feeling annoyed. He really despised the Living World "Rangiku, lets just ditch our gigai's. That way we can have a good look around unhampered."

"Agreed" Rangiku replied throwing a glare at the group of men who were now whistling and cat calling at her. She swallowed her soul candy and joined Toushiro's side.

"What about them?" She asked indicating their gigai's.

Toushiro watch as his gigai sat in Rangiku's gigai's lap and began making out with each other, "Meh just leave them to it" he replied before walking away.

Rangiku skipped after him happy to be out of her gigai too. They kept going until they were a good distance away from the bench "What were you doing before I came back?" She asked.

"I was just updating the mission log" he answered "Unfortunately I didn't have that much to report" he glanced at her and noticed for the first time the paper clutched in her hand "What's that you have there?"

"Oh this?" Rangiku passed him the map "Its a map of all the train routes down here that run throughout the city. I asked about the track where the incidents took place and was informed that all trains on that route have been cancelled until further notice."

"I see. I don't suppose they offered any other alternative routes?" Toushiro asked, his mind already running through different scenarios.

"As a matter of fact they did. If we take this blue route here" she pointed it out on the map "The closest stop to where the accidents have been occurring is here. So all we need to do is jump on the next train, get off at that stop then navigate our way to the accident site somehow."

Toushiro nodded. That was exactly what he were thinking too "Well then, looks like we have a train to catch then Rangiku."

* * *

><p>"Juushiro.." A soft voice called in his ear, "Wake up."<p>

His sleep fogged brain was having trouble processing who that voice belonged to, although he knew he recognised it. Just five more minutes he told himself before drifting deeper back to sleep.

"Juushiro!" That same voice called again, this time it were a little more forceful. He could feel a hand shaking his shoulder trying to lift him out of his slumber.

He began to stir and the first thing he became aware of was a small weight pressing down firmly on his chest and shoulder. Next he felt a cool palm resting against his forehead. He sighed when the persons familiar scent flooded his nostrils and slowly cracked his eyes open.

"Retsu?" He asked. He blinked several times and her blurry face hovering above his soon came into focus.

"Good your awake, I was beginning to worry you were in a coma or something" She answered in a light teasing tone.

"Very funny" he grinned. He tried to push himself up into a sitting position but the weight on his chest made it awkward. He glanced down and found Kotaro curled up on his chest fast asleep. "What time is it?"

"A little after six" Unohana replied shifting her weight slightly on the edge of the couch.

Ukitake's eyes widened "I only meant to have a short rest after Shunsui left," he felt astonished. Shunsui and Nanao had left just before three, had he really fallen asleep for three hours. He remembered it was time for Kotaro to have a nap and the little guy wanted to sit on his knee for a little bit. He guessed he must have nodded off too.

Unohana smiled sweetly, "Don't worry about it, you probably both just needed to catch up on some sleep."

"Maybe" he went to run a hand across his forehead and it came away damp with sweat.

Unohana caught him staring at his finger tips, "How are you feeling Juushiro?"

He was about to lie and tell her he felt fine, but then he remembered her cool palm against his forehead and realised she would already know he was feeling a little hot "Maybe I'm a little hot," he replied holding up his fingers.

She rested her palm against his cheek and peered into his warm brown eyes "Maybe you'll feel better after another healing session," she said, her blue eyes twinkling slightly.

"Maybe," he replied smirking "Only way to know for sure is to try it."

"Indeed, but in the mean time" She pulled her hand away from his face "A good meal will have to do."

Only then did Ukitake notice the smell of food wafting from the kitchen. He inhaled appreciatively, he always loved Retsu's cooking. "You didn't have to cook for us you know."

"I know, but I wanted to." Unohana placed a hand softly on Kotaro's back and gave him a gentle nudge "Kotaro.." she called gently, just like she did with Ukitake. "Wake up."

Kotaro stirred and lifted his head up, "Mummy?" He asked a little sleepily.

"No sunshine, its grandma," Unohana smiled warmly. She gently extracted Kotaro from Ukitake's chest and placed him onto her lap. "Did you have a nice sleep?"

Kotaro's head bobbled as he nodded, while he sleepily rubbed his eyes. He paused and looked around him "Where's Yori gone?"

"Oh!" Ukitake exclaimed before turning over slightly on his side and fishing behind his back. "I wondered what that strange lump was." He pulled his hand out from behind his back and presented the somewhat squished, dragon to him.

"Yori!" Kotaro cheered clapping his hands together.

"ROARR!" Ukitake growled playfully before handing the stuffed toy back to Kotaro.

Kotaro grabbed it and snuggled his face into it happily.

Unohana got to her feet carrying Kotaro with her, Ukitake sat up and swung his legs off the couch "So what did you make for dinner Retsu?"

"You'll see," she replied gently heading for the kitchen.

* * *

><p>"This is our stop Toshi" Rangiku informed as the rattling train slowed to a stop and people began getting to their feet.<p>

He looked up from his Soul phone and saw that Rangiku was already halfway towards the exit. He followed after her and stepped out onto a busy platform, clearing the train door just in time before a herd of people wanting to board the train could trample him.

He made his way over to Rangiku who was studying a large map plastered to the wall. As he reached her he wrapped an arm around her waist pulling her close, "Which route do we need to pick up now?"

"This is where we are at the moment," Rangiku ran her finger along the length of a blue line which ran parallel to a red line. "This red line is the route that the accidents occurred on. So that opposite platform" She pointed over her shoulder, indicating the deserted platform across the other side of the tracks "Is where we need to be."

"Hmm, maybe its a good job after all that we ditched our gigai's back there," Toushiro said eyeing the opposite platform and taking note of the security personnel walking up and down "I doubt they'd let anyone past."

"True" Rangiku agreed "We also couldn't cheat like this," she said before flash stepping away and reappearing on the opposite platform in the blink of an eye.

Toushiro rolled his eyes before doing the same and landing beside her. He looked to his left at the large gaping hole where the train track was swallowed up by the darkness and then to his right at the other tunnel "Do we take the left tunnel or the right tunnel?" Both of the tunnels looked equally dark, unappealing and claustrophobic.

Rangiku consulted her little paper map again, humming away while she got her bearings "I do believe, we need that one," she pointed at the left tunnel.

"Left it is then," he began walking to the end of the platform then jumped down onto the tracks. He stared into the huge tunnel and notice that the only lighting were small red lanterns mounted on the walls at long frequent intervals and some of them were broken. He held his palm out and created a turquoise ball of kido for illumination "Rangiku."

Rangiku jumped down onto the track beside him, took one look into the dark tunnel and produced her own pink ball of kido "Are you ready Toshi?"

He nodded before putting one foot in front of the other "Stay close to me."

* * *

><p>They'd been walking along in silence for what felt like forever. Every few minutes or so Toushiro would glance to the side to make sure Rangiku was still there with him. The tunnel was vast and any slight noise would send echoes bouncing off the walls, however the heavy darkness felt oppressive and suffocating.<p>

He heard Rangiku trip and stumble forwards, her light flickering out. He quickly spun to catch her, causing his own orb of light to flicker and die too, plunging them into absolute darkness.

"Toshi!" She gasped, sounding short of breath.

"Its OK, Its OK" he soothed pulling her into his arms. With a free hand he quickly produced another ball of soothing turquoise coloured light. He must admit, he was finding the darkness choking too.

Rangiku took a few calming breaths and while she collected herself, Toushiro dug inside his pocket for his Soul phone. He flipped it open to pinpoint exactly where they were and just how much further they had to go. He was dismayed to see they were barely a quarter of the way there. This tunnel was much bigger then they'd anticipated.

"Toshi, are we nearly there?" Rangiku asked, the discomfort she were feeling clear in her voice.

"We still have quite a way to go yet," He heard her whimper ever so slightly, so he reached for her hand and she latched onto his arm instead, gripping it tightly. Toushiro began walking again and chose to occupy his mind by thinking of other stuff. The first thought that cropped up in his mind was how rarely he'd seen Rangiku agitated like she were now. He was trying to determine whether she were fearful of the darkness, or whether she were claustrophobic.

The only time he'd ever truly seen her frightened, must have been back in the winter war. Back on that cold, lonely, blood soaked battlefield. He'd been grievously wounded, almost slashed in two right down the middle. It was a miracle he'd still been breathing, however he'd barely been hanging on in there. He'd been certain his time had been drawing to a rapid close. Just as the fear he was going to die alone had begun to set in, she'd found him. And she'd held him and even though she'd been trying to stay strong and hopeful for him, he could tell she was frightened. Frightened of losing him. And how did he know she was frightened? Easy because she'd started to...

"Row row row your boat, gently down the stream," Rangiku murmured ever so quietly.

Sing.

"Merrily merrily merrily merrily, life is just a dream."

They carried on for a good half an hour, Toushiro constantly checking their progress on his phone while Rangiku quietly sang nursery rhymes to herself. Quite a few of them he recognised as ones she'd sung to Kotaro to help get him off to sleep.

They came to a bit of a junction where the track could either split off to the left or right. After taking a moment to check the map they headed off down the left tunnel.

Growing tired of the silence he glanced at Rangiku and noticed that she seemed a bit calmer "Are you feeling a bit calmer now?"

"It just took a bit of getting used to, that's all." She turned and grinned at him.

He smiled back, glad to see her back to her usual carefree self "So which one was it?"

"What do you mean?" She asked quirking an eyebrow.

"Which one made you frightened? The darkness or the claustrophobia?" He watched her face closely for a reaction.

"What makes you think it was one of them?" She pouted.

"They just seem like the most common fears in this sort of environment" he answered logically.

"Well you're wrong, its neither of those" she replied a little smug.

"Then what is it?" He asked curious.

"I guess in places like this, I feel a little uncomfortable because anything could be lurking behind me, ready to stab me in the back. Makes the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. I'm not so bad if I know there are people I trust behind me."

Toushiro chuckled "I guess that never crossed my mind. Although it would be a pretty effective way to dispose of somebody. Quietly sneaking up on them in the middle of a dark dark tunnel."

"DON'T!" She yelled crossly "Its not funny Toshi."

"I'm Sorry. But there's nothing to worry about, I cant imagine anything could possibly sneak up on us." He reached out and held her hand. "Come on, I think we're about three quarters of the way there now."

They had only taken about five steps when a loud screeching noise reached their ears from behind. They both froze and spun on the spot, staring into the heavy darkness behind them. Toushiro pocketed his phone and clutched the handle of Hyourimaru tightly.

"Toshi! What the hell was that?" Rangiku asked gripping Haineko's handle firmly.

"I don't know and I cant sense anything either."

There were another loud screech, this time sounding a bit closer then before and there was an odd rumbling sensation coming from the tracks beneath their feet.

Toushiro clenched his teeth tightly together. This couldn't be good.


	6. Chapter 6

Authors Notes at Bottom of page.

* * *

><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 6<p>

Toushiro stared into the inky blackness before him, all of his senses on high alert.

The rumbling beneath his feet had ceased and the source of the screeching had grown quiet. He couldn't feel any type of pressure to indicate whether it were the Hollow they'd been searching for or not. He sniffed the air but it held no foul, rotting stench one would associate with a Hollow. So now he were left to ponder the alternatives.

"Toshi" Rangiku called in a hushed whisper "What do you suppose it is? It doesn't feel like a Hollow."

Toushiro felt pleased that Rangiku was thinking on the same wave length as him. Whatever caused the odd screeching and the rumbling floor seemed to have stopped for now.

"No it doesn't. And if it was a Hollow, it would've been charging us down already."

"Hmm, So what do you want to do now?" Rangiku asked.

What indeed, he thought pulling out his phone and flipping it open. The display remind quiet indicating no Hollow, however what grabbed his attention was a purple dot flashing away steadily. He pulled up the map of the subway on his phone and noticed the purple dot was situated some fifty metres behind them. Just around the bend they'd passed by some time ago.

Rangiku glanced over his shoulder "What could that be?"

A loud piercing screech shattered the silence and the tracks began to vibrate again. Toushiro looked at his phone once more and saw that the purple dot had begun to move.

"Whatever it is, its coming our way" He replied scowling.

"How far away?" Rangiku asked immediately on guard.

"It should be coming around the corner any second now" Toushiro snapped his phone shut and seconds later the tunnel was flooded with bright light. He reached out half blinded by the sudden brightness and pulled Rangiku towards him while backing away towards the wall.

Once his eyes adjusted to the brightness, he could make out some sort of carriage closing the gap between them.

"Toshi I think its a maintenance carriage" Rangiku yelled over the loud rumbling.

"How do you know?" He yelled back.

"Its the only plausible explanation. This route is off limits to all trains, but somebody still needs to clear up the crash site. Trust me Toshi, this thing is going to the same place as us."

Toushiro considered Rangiku's words. It were true that the only place the carriage could go, would be where the crashes had occurred. He recalled the lay out of the track and knew there were no other turn-offs. It was logical to assume they would only allow some sort of maintenance vehicle along the tracks until they got to the bottom of the crashes. So as Rangiku had surmised there were only one place it could go, and they were headed there.

He watched as the carriage drew closer and made the decision then and there. "Rangiku!" He yelled over the noise "We're going to jump aboard when it passes us. Get ready to hop on OK?"

The two of them backed up as close to the tunnel wall as they could. Although the carriage wasn't nearly as fast as the usual trains that sped through the tunnels, it was still pretty fast and it would take some careful timing.

Shunpo was hardly a challenge for either of them, but shunpoing onto a fast moving object required them to have a little bit more finesse then normal.

"Now!" Toushiro yelled over the loud rattle as the carriage zoomed past.

They both flashed and leapt onto the speeding carriage, as expected their landing was a little bit rocky but they managed to find their footing. That was until the carriage lurched to one side as they sped around another corner and Rangiku lost her balance. She toppled over and crashed into Toushiro sending him into a pile of metal boxes along with her, causing the boxes to topple over with a loud crash.

"Did you hear that?" Asked an anxious voice from the front cockpit area.

"You idiot, its only the boxes toppling over" replied another voice, it sounded deeper and much older then the first guy.

"Yeah but what caused them to topple over?"

"Oh here we go again! You and your bleedin conspiracy stories. Or is it another ghost story?"

"Well big heavy metal boxes don't just topple over by themselves."

"No! Of course not!" Replied the older man sarcastically "So it must have been a little ghostie.. Wooooo!"

Toushiro shared a look with Rangiku and rolled his eyes. Human beings were truly misinformed and ignorant about the after life. He pulled himself up and shuffled into a more comfortable position. Rangiku crawled over to him and settled herself down by his side.

"You wont be saying that when we reach the crash site Ernie" The younger man spoke up after a long moment of silence "Seven train crashes and no survivors. If this place wasn't haunted before, then it sure as hell is now."

"Derek, I've been working these tunnels for twenty years. Twenty Years! And in all that time, I've seen jack shit to suggest this place is riddled with ghost."

Toushiro looked away from the two workers and glanced at Rangiku and was amused to see her absorbed in the two men's conversation. He leaned over and rested a hand on her arm "Rangiku, did you hear that? This thing is going to the crash site."

"I told you so" She replied turning to face him and holding a finger up to her lips to shush him.

"Yeah but Ernie did you ever watch that horror movie called creep?" The young man said in a high pitched squeak "Honestly some of the stuff that could creeping around down here" the young man shivered dramatically "It could happen."

"Bleedin hell can you hear yourself?" Ernie scoffed loudly "I'll say this once. There is no such thing as ghosts! This place is not haunted! And there is absolutely nothing creeping around down here! Watching too many horror movies is putting crazy ideas in your head. Now shut your mouth and be quiet! You're giving me a headache."

The younger man sighed, deflated slightly "Fine Ernie."

Toushiro felt Rangiku nudge him in his ribs with her elbow, he glanced over at her and she'd leant in close to whisper in his ear "I know humans can be ignorant at times as far as death is concerned, but that young guy isn't completely wrong."

Toushiro just smirked and pulled out his phone checking their current location. Jumping on board had speeded up their journey considerably and he estimated they'd reach the site in about twenty minutes or so, as long as the carriage didn't make any stops along the way.

"Rangiku, I doubt we'll find much there, but at least we can determine whether the crashes are due to a fault in the tracks or whether it was caused by a Hollow."

Rangiku nodded "I was thinking along the same lines. This route has been closed for about a week now. The Hollow surely would realise once dinner stopped being delivered that it would have to go elsewhere or starve."

"Which means it could be hiding somewhere else waiting to strike again" Toushiro pocketed his phone again "But either way we need to confirm the presence of it first before hunting it down elsewhere."

They fell into silence as the maintenance carriage rattled along on the tracks. Rangiku rested her head against Toushiro's shoulder and yawned loudly. Toushiro smiled and wrapped an arm around her shoulder "We'll be there soon Rangiku."

* * *

><p>The wind could be heard gusting loudly, rustling the branches of the trees outside and driving the heavy sheets of rain against the office windows. It was cold and damp, the type of weather that drew people inside to seek out warmth and comfort. The evening was nothing short of miserable, and it suited his mood perfectly.<p>

Shunsui sighed heavily and reached an arm out and plucked the sake bottle off the floor. He brought it up to his lips and took a long, deep swig.

Draining the bottle, he gave it a little shake before tossing it over the back of the couch. He grunted in frustration, that happened to be his last bottle and he was no where near as drunk as he wanted to be. Heck he wasn't even slightly tipsy yet.

So with his original plan thwarted, the one where he intended to drink until he could forget his troubles, his mind wondered to the source of his troubles. Nanao.

It alarmed him just how quickly things had changed between them in just a few short hours.

When he'd visited her in the office that morning everything had been fine, exactly how they should be, and at Ukitake's she'd been so happy playing with Kotaro. Then there was that tiny moment, when he'd felt her energy change ever so slightly, after that... well he wasn't entirely sure.

After they'd departed Ukitake's place Nanao had been some what distant, he'd tried to engage her in conversation several times during the walk back to the Eighth but all he got in return were short, vague answers.

Once they'd arrived back at the Eighth, Nanao went her own way rather then accompanying him back to his quarters. She'd practically moved in with him and it was rare for her to visit her own quarters nowadays. He got the feeling she were desperate to get some space from him, so instead of calling her out on it, he'd decided to just let her go. Since then he'd been pondering just what he might have done that'd upset her so much. He'd been thinking back over the course of the day, over and over again, each time he came up with nothing. In the end he'd invaded his office where he'd left the good sake in an attempt to quieten his mind.

He closed his eyes and shifted on the couch finding a comfier position. It was going to be hard following Ukitake's advice by keeping an eye on Nanao if she didn't want to be around him.

He were just beginning to relax when he heard the quiet approach of footsteps outside the office door. He glanced over at the clock on the wall, it was a few minutes after 1 AM. He smiled to himself, although Nanao had masked her reiatsu, she'd failed to mask her habits from him over the years. If she were coming into the office at this time of night, that meant she were having trouble sleeping.

Luckily he'd completely masked his own energy before he came to the office, he knew Nanao wouldn't be pleased that he were drinking in the office, but he'd had a hunch that she would drop by.

The door slid open quietly and he listened as Nanao silently crossed over the wooden floor towards her desk. She flicked the little desk lamp on, which gave the room a nice soft glow. He heard the light creak of her chair as she settled herself down, followed by the soft rustle of papers.

He grinned to himself, pleased with his forward thinking. When he'd arrived here two hours ago, he'd swiped the stack of paperwork that needed to be done off her desk and stashed it beside the couch he were currently lounging on.

He heard her sigh in frustration when she couldn't find what she were looking for. He sat up quietly and peered over to her. He frowned when he saw that her face was slightly pale and he could tell from her eyes that she were tired. It was hard to read her energy, but he could tell she looked worn out and in need of some rest.

"Nanao-chan" he called out softly.

"Captain!" She cried out almost jumping out of her skin and knocking over an inkwell.

"What are you doing here?" He asked in the same soft tone, he dragged himself to his feet and walked slowly over to her desk "Trouble sleeping?"

"I.. I.." She began stuttering, before looking away from him and choosing to stare at a spot on the wall somewhere over his shoulder, "Something like that."

"Do you want to talk to me about it?" He frowned slightly when he saw her flinch at the question.

"No, I'm OK," she answered just a little too quickly, still avoiding his gaze.

Shunsui studied Nanao closely, he saw no signs that she were angry or irritated by his presense. So he stepped closer and leant over the desk, reaching out with his hand to cup her cheek "Nanao-chan, look at me."

She reluctantly met his eye "I said I'm fine."

Shunsui withdrew his hand from her face and stepped around to Nanao's side of the desk. He dropped down to his knees by the side of her chair and rested his hand over hers, which was clenched tightly in her lap.

"You don't look fine Nanao-chan," Shunsui used his spare hand to run his fingers through her loose hair, "I wish you would tell me what's bothering you."

He checked her face for some sort of reaction and was surprised when he saw a lone tear trailing down her cheek. Now he knew for certain something was bothering her. Nanao never cried.

He wiped the tear away with his thumb, "Please don't lie to me Nanao. It kills me to see you this way." He leant closer and pulled her into a hug.

Nanao buried her face in his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his neck "I don't know why I keep feeling the way I do. I'm so confused."

"Confused about what?" He asked, running a soothing hand up and down her back.

"I feel like a completely different person at times," she pulled away from him slightly to look at his face "I feel like I'm losing control of myself and I don't want to hurt you. I don't want to push you away."

Shunsui looked down at Nanao "You could never push me away Nanao-chan."

"But what if I do?" She asked quietly.

"I wont let you," Shunsui replied pulling her closer again.

They fell into silence, the only sound in the room was the steady patter of rain against the windows. Shunsui could feel Nanao's energy now that she'd relaxed and wasn't concealing it from him, usually Nanao's energy felt cool, calm and collected. But to him it felt more unsettled and choppy now, just like an ocean when a storm was brewing up. He hoped that wouldn't be the case here.

"Nanao, I know you're not keen on the idea" he paused, wondering if she were listening to him or not "But will you at least go and see Retsu tomorrow?" He was expecting her to protest at his suggestion, but all he got was silence.

"Nanao..?" He noticed her body felt limp in his arms, looking down he smiled at the peaceful look on her face, "Sleep well my lovely Nanao-chan." He kissed the top of her head and rose to his feet, he got a better hold on Nanao and made his way carefully to the door.

Once outside he flashed stepped the short distance to his quarters and let himself in. He strolled down his hallway and into his bedroom and gently deposited Nanao on his bed. Next he took off her glasses and placed them on the bedside table, before helping her out of her uniform and folding it neatly on a nearby chair.

He undressed himself and tossed aside his own uniform, before climbing into his bed and curling himself around Nanao protectively, "Don't worry Nanao-chan, I'll always love and protect you, no matter what," He mumbled softly in her ear.

* * *

><p>Toushiro kicked at a chunk of metal barring his path and used his elbow to shove another piece away from him. His phone bleeped loudly once again and he paused in his tracks.<p>

"Are we getting closer Toshi?" Rangiku asked from behind.

"Yes, not much further now. Its just up ahead," he called back.

They'd arrived at the crash site a good few hours ago and it became immediately obvious that the crashes were a result of Hollow attacks. The latest train that'd been derailed had been left alone, and unseen to the human eye the train had various scratches and claw marks ripping through the metal work which only a Hollow could produce.

There were also traces of the Hollows Reiatsu all over the place and they'd sent several samples back to the Research and Development Department back in the Soul Society.

Toushiro took in a breath of air and retched. Not only did the air in the tunnel smell strongly of smoke, burnt out metal and the acrid scent of chemicals, it also held the foul rotting stench of the Hollow.

His phone bleeped again and on the display the tiny blue dot began travelling away from their location. Toushiro sighed loudly "Its on the move again Rangiku."

"Where can it possibly be going?" She asked squinting at the display.

"I don't think it has anywhere in mind, I reckon it just wants to avoid us," Toushiro started forwards again treading carefully over the various chunks of metal and debris littering the tunnel floor. He kept a close eye on the blue dot travelling away from them in a seemingly random manner.

On his phone red dots usually represented enemies, the common example being Hollows. Whites dots showed fellow Shinigami and green dots were generally humans. The blue dot they'd been pursuing for the last hour represented a soul that had yet to be sent on. The fact that it happened to be down here was a significant find considering the recent Hollow activity and so he was eager to find it and gain some valuable information.

He paused as he watched the dot stop at a junction, obviously deciding which way to give them the slip. One tunnel looped away from where it were and would eventually join back up to the main tracks and station, the other however led to a dead end.

Toushiro waited hoping luck would be on their side and the lost soul would take the left turn.

"What are you looking at now?" Rangiku asked peering over his shoulder.

"I'm waiting to see if this soul does the smart thing and takes the left turn," Toushiro stared at the screen, willing the soul to go left.

After several long minutes the blue dot began to move again. Toushiro smirked and snapped his phone shut, "Lets hurry, we need to get there before it realises its a dead end."

They hurried as best they could through the tight rubble filled tunnel. Once they cleared the battered train their passage was much smoother. They alternated between running and flash stepping and in no time the junction came into view up ahead. They slowed to a stop and Toushiro pulled his phone out once again.

"Its still here," He said quietly, as they began walking down the much narrower tunnel. This small section wasn't part of the train lines, it was more like a storage section. As they got further into the wide corridor they could see various boxes and crates stacked up high against the concrete walls.

"We should spread out Rangiku," he suggested in a low voice, "Its still here, I think its most likely hiding amongst these boxes somewhere."

Rangiku nodded and disappeared out of sight down a long row of boxes, that were stacked quite high and neatly on top of each other. She walked lightly on her feet to avoid making too much noise, any sound would bounce right off the walls again. She could hear Toushiro's light footsteps from the other side of the boxes to her right, doing the exactly same thing.

She paused abruptly when she heard a quick scuffle of feet coming from just off her left side. When the noise died down she silently moved forwards until she came to a break in the boxes on the left.

Rangiku heard more scuffling and followed the path from where it came from, she knew the back wall of this corridor wasn't too far away now so whoever she were pursuing, would be coming to a stop shortly.

She took a couple more steps and heard a sharp intake of breath and a small thump a short way ahead. The pathway went straight ahead, then reached the back wall with a right turn running along the length of the end wall. In-between her and the end wall was only a single right turn halfway down. As she neared it Toushiro stepped out from the right turn, she hurried to close the gap between them and muttered under her breath "I think its just around that last turn at the end."

Toushiro nodded in agreement then led them down the last part of the walkway and along the back wall.

The path along the back wall opened up into a small loading bay with a desk area tucked away neatly in one corner, there were no other way into the small loading area other then the one they just came down. So the soul they'd been following had to be here somewhere.

They glanced around at the various boxes and crates stacked upon each other, that were scattered around the area in a seemingly random manner. It was the perfect place to go into hiding.

Toushiro sighed "I doubt demanding it to show itself will have any effect."

"Of course it wont, its scared of us," Rangiku whispered back "It probably thinks we're the Hollow."

"Hmm what do you suggest then?" Toushiro asked while casting his eye around the loading bay.

"We're going to have to lure it out somehow Toshi."

"Hold that thought" Toushiro said fixing his eyes on a column of boxes, that'd been stacked precariously high.

Rangiku followed his gaze and saw what'd caught his attention. The large stack of boxes were wobbling from side to side. It lurched sharply to the left, before swinging back over to the right then finally toppled over and went crashing to the ground with a loud bang which echoed deafeningly off the concrete walls. Amongst all the chaos of noise they both heard a distinct cry of pain.

Rangiku made to move forward but Toushiro grabbed her elbow. She threw a look over her shoulder at him and he shook his head no. He released her and he made his way over to the toppled boxes that had spilt their contents all over the hard floor.

He began grabbing random boxes and started tossing them aside as he tried to reach the source of the soft groaning. He'd shifted the seventh box when a sharp cry from behind him yelled out "That's my Sister!" Before a small weight latched onto his arm trying to prevent him from moving any more boxes.

He looked down in surprise and saw a small child dangling off his elbow, a small boy to be precise. "I wont let you hurt her, you big meanie!"

He shook the small child off and turned to face him fully, Rangiku was beside his side in an instant "Its OK little fellow, we're not going to hurt you" she said softly. It was the voice she generally used when trying to get Kotaro to settle down for sleep.

The small boy had his hands clenched tightly together, his blue eyes were darting between his and Rangiku's, then to the pile of boxes and back again. He was trying to appear tough but they could both see that he were shaking in fear.

"Tenno, who are you talking to?" Came a small voice from under the pile of boxes.

The small boy fidgeted slightly then asked "Are you really not going to hurt us?"

"We are not going to hurt you," Rangiku replied with a soft smile "Are we Toshi?"

"No we're not. In fact we are here to help you," Toushiro answered before turning back to the pile of boxes and started to toss them aside again. He shifted a few more then finally came face to face with the small boys sister, "Hello there."

"Hiya," the small girl replied shyly.

"Let me help you out of there," the small girl held her arms out and Toushiro easily plucked her out from her hiding spot. Once he placed her back down on her feet, she went running over to her brother clinging onto him tightly.

Rangiku knelt down so her eyes were on the same level as the two children. "Oh! You're twins! That's so cute."

The boy nodded at her and wrapped an arm around his sister.

Toushiro took a good look at the two siblings, he guessed them to be about five or six years old. They had identical facial features and matching dark blue eyes, the boys hair was dark brown and wavy and the little girls hair was dark and wavy too, but much longer and tied back in a pony tail. They were both dressed in the modern attire of jeans, T-shirts, jackets and trainers. Both of them had a soul chain protruding from their chests.

"What's your names?" Rangiku asked kindly.

"I'm Tenno," the boy replied "And this is my sister Akiko."

"Aww they're lovely names," she cooed.

Toushiro knelt down too and looked between the two souls, he were fairly certain he knew how they came to be down here, what he didn't quite understand was how they'd managed to avoid being devoured by the Hollow.

"Can you tell us how you came to be down here?" He wanted to find out what information he could and then he wanted to send them on as soon as possible.

Tenno spoke up first "We was on a train, Mum and Dad were taking us to the zoo."

"Yeah that's right!" Akiko nodded enthusiastically "But then the train toppled over."

"It was all confusing, the train was on fire, people were screaming," Tenno looked down at his chest "Everybody had one of these," he tugged on the chain hard.

"Tenno grabbed me and pulled me off the train," Akiko spoke up in a trembling voice, "We were looking for Mum and Dad, and that's when we saw it."

"Saw what?" Toushiro prompted.

"A monster, it was huge." Akiko answered, her eyes beginning to fill up with tears.

"Can you tell us what it looked like?" Toushiro asked in a sympathetic tone, he hated having to ask them to recall the horrors they'd witnessed.

"It was massive, it had these huge teeth and claws," Tenno began to describe what Toushiro knew to be the Hollow. "It kept picking up the other people and..."

Akiko began to cry and rushed forward into Rangiku's arms seeking comfort "It's OK, you don't have to tell us any more," She soothed gently.

"How did you manage to evade the Monster, Tenno?" Toushiro asked as he pulled out his phone, checking the area.

"We ran away while the monster wasn't looking and we found this place."

"Its our secret hideout," Akiko said, looking up at Rangiku.

"Why did you two return to the train?" Rangiku asked wiping away Akiko's tears.

"We were searching for Mum and Dad," Tenno looked away from them and sniffed "We couldn't find them though. Then we heard voices and stuff moving around, so we ran away."

"I'm sorry if we startled you," Toushiro began "You see, we weren't expecting to find anyone down here."

Tenno stared at Toushiro, taking in his odd appearance and Shinigami robes, then his eyes widened as he finally noticed Toushiro's sword strapped to his back. His gaze then travelled to Rangiku and he frowned when he noticed that she had a sword strapped to her waist too.

"Who are you?" Tenno asked feeling curious "And where do you come from?"

"Rangiku, would you like to explain it to them?" Toushiro asked not taking his eye off his phone. Rangiku noticed two red dots on the display, one were quite close to their position and the other seemed to be miles away. She nodded and turned back to the two twins.

"Toushiro and myself come from a place called the Soul Society. Its where all souls go to live after they have passed on from the Living World."

"So its where people go once they die?" Tenno asked.

"Yes that's right, its the after life," Rangiku confirmed.

"So me and my sister are dead?" Tenno asked a little worried.

"Yes you are," Rangiku reached out and placed her hand on his head.

"So you come from this place?" Akiko asked, curiosity finally taking over her sorrow.

"Yes we do, we are called Shinigami. Our main job is to protect souls such as yourselves from monsters we call Hollows."

"Was that thing.." They both blurted out in unison.

Rangiku nodded "Yes it is. Its why me and Toushiro are here. We are hunting it down to put a stop to its attacks."

"Ohhh" They both said together "So you're really here to help us?"

"Yes, our second job is to make sure souls such as yourselves, make it safely to the Soul Society, so Hollows cant attack you."

Toushiro's phone bleeped loudly and a heavy pressure flooded the air "Rangiku.." he said warningly.

"The Hollow?" She asked glancing at him, Toushiro nodded and rose to his feet "How far away is it?"

"Its still a ways off. It probably senses our presense," Toushiro scowled.

"What is it?" Tenno asked.

"Is that thing back again?" Akiko asked in alarm.

"Listen to me," Rangiku said firmly to the two twins "Its not safe for you to linger here much longer. You've been lucky so far, but I'm afraid if you don't pass over soon, you will be in great danger."

Two sets of eyes widened at her statement, so she hurried on before they could interrupt again.

"The safest place for the two of you now is the Soul Society."

"Rangiku.." Toushiro cut in "Its on the move, heading this way," He gripped Hyourimaru's handle and pulled it from its sheath.

"Whoa!" The two twins chorused, impressed with the big sword.

"Hold each other's hands" Rangiku instructed before drawing Haineko too. The two twins grasped each others hand and stared up at Rangiku, "There's nothing to be afraid of."

Toushiro stepped over to them, the butt of Hyourimaru's handle already glowing a soft blue colour. Rangiku raised Haineko and pointed the butt of the handle towards the girl and Toushiro pointed his towards the boy "Its time for you two to go" he said quietly.

"Will we ever see you again?" Tenno asked.

Akiko nodded her little head "How will we find you again?"

"The cycle of rebirth is a very mysterious thing. I'm sure if your will is strong, and you want something bad enough, then you will find your way," Toushiro replied.

"Ready Toushiro?" Rangiku asked.

Toushiro nodded and they both pressed the butt of their swords against the foreheads of the twins. The small blue glow intensified as the two twins energy compressed down into two small identical orbs, that floated before them.

Slowly at first they began to rise, before picking up speed and soaring higher into the air with a soft tinkle.

Toushiro flipped his sword back around so he were holding it properly, just as a wall of boxes exploded outwards and a Hollow appeared before them.

* * *

><p>Hello! Finally back with the next Chapter. I was halfway through the ShunNanao portion when I realised the scene I was working towards would have been much to early in the story, and if I'd have gone on with it, it would have completely screwed the plot up. Its vital we got to hear Shunsui's thoughts and feelings. As always I dont want to give too much away.

So on that note I was considering upping this fics rating to an M. The shun/nanao plot is going to get much darker as it delves deeper into the jekyll and hyde route with some scenes of domestic abuse up ahead. Also I've had a great Uki/Uno healing session stuck in my head for ages which I'd like to get out.

I would be happy to hear your thoughts and feelings on this matter.

And finally I would like to say thank you to my reviewers and the people who added me to thier favourites/alerts/etc. It helps me to keep going with the story if I hit a temporary block and nothing will come out. That is all for now, see you next Chapter ^_^


	7. Chapter 7

Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 7

The Hollow charged forwards raising a large clawed hand, swiping at Toushiro across his stomach. Toushiro stepped back swinging his sword from side to side, easily dodging each of the slashes the beast threw his way. Judging from the Hollows pressure, it was a fairly weak Hollow and it shouldn't require too much effort to bring it down.

He saw Rangiku side step the Hollow, he knew what she intended to do. While he kept it busy she would slip behind it and strike from behind. The Hollow however, caught sight of her and spun around to face her. Toushiro raised his pressure slightly and the Hollow quickly lost interest with Rangiku and came charging back towards him, sensing the stronger reiatsu.

Toushiro saw Rangiku leap high into the air, raising Haineko high above her head. She pointed the tip of her sword towards the Hollow before gravity kicked in. She then plummeted back down driving the tip of her sword into the back of the Hollows head using her weight to drive it deep.

The Hollow shrieked loudly and disintegrated before their eyes. Rangiku flicked the blood off her sword before placing it back in its sheath. Toushiro slid Hyourimaru back into its sheath strung over his shoulder.

Toushiro fished his phone out of his robes and began jabbing at the screen. Rangiku watched him closely, the scowl on his face deepening by the second.

"Dammit!" He yelled after several long seconds "Its disappeared again."

"The other Hollow?" Rangiku remembered seeing a second red dot on his screen.

"Yes" he sighed heavily "This one was just a small fry, no doubt it only showed up here because it could sense our pressures. The other one that's slipped away is the one responsible for the attacks. I got a brief reading on its pressure."

Rangiku frowned "How strong is it?"

"Pretty strong. Its to be expected, its been feeding on a lot of souls down here."

"We'll get it Toshi," Rangiku planted her hands on her hips and rotated slowly on the spot, looking over the trashed loading bay "So, we've managed to rescue two adorable souls, picked off one Hollow and determined the cause of the crashes. Now what?"

Toushiro sighed "We call it a day for now. That other Hollow went to ground as soon as it knew of our presense. Its going to take time to flush it out again."

"Great!" Rangiku's face lit up "I'm starving, think we could pick up a pizza on the way back to the apartment?"

"Sure," Toushiro agreed, it'd been a long day and he wasn't particularly fussed about what he ate. "If anywhere is still open at this time, its really late."

"Hmm," Rangiku pouted as she got lost in her own thoughts "Wonder which way is the quickest way back from here."

Toushiro began to rub his temple absent-mindedly as he checked his phone again for the umpteenth time that day "There's a door around here somewhere, it looks like it leads to a flight of stairs that will take us back up to the main streets."

"Excellent!" Rangiku cheered "Lets go! I'm hungry and I really need to see the sky again."

"But," Toushiro interjected before Rangiku could grab him and cart him off.

"But what?" She asked impatiently.

"We need our gigai's and if I remember right.." Toushiro stated.

"We dumped them at the main platform," Rangiku groaned loudly, "Damn it seemed like a good idea at the time.. How far away is the main platform?"

"Its on the other side of the city Ran..." Toushiro dead panned.

"Ah crap," Rangiku pouted stubbornly.

Toushiro couldn't have agreed with her more.

* * *

><p>Ukitake sat at his desk in his office, slowly sipping on the herbal tea Unohana had prescribed him. It was still pretty early and he'd left the door leading to his quarters open, so he could listen out for Kotaro waking up. He took another sip of his tea and cringe at the bitter after taste, he placed his cup down and pulled another report towards him.<p>

His eyes skimmed over the report detailing a recent patrol undertook by some of his squad members, everything seemed to have gone smoothly with no incidents to report. He grabbed his brush and signed his name before placing it on the completed pile and moving onto the next sheet needing his attention.

He yawned deeply and his chest hitched, he threw a hand up to cover his mouth as a mild coughing fit started. Once it receded he glanced at his palm and was pleased to see no speckles of blood this time.

He sighed when he heard two distinctive voices arguing loudly from down the hallway, knowing the little moment of peace and quiet he loved so much in the morning was about to be shattered.

"Its too early," he grumbled as he rubbed his temple with his spare hand.

The hurried footsteps drew closer to his office door and the voices grew louder in volume before there was a loud knock on the door followed by a bang as the door swung open and slammed against the wall. Ukitake winced at the sudden intrusion of noise, his head was feeling a little fragile this morning.

"GOOD MORNING CAPTAIN!" Kiyone and Sentaro both chorused together.

"HOW ARE YOU FEELING SIR?" Kiyone asked.

"HEY! I WAS ABOUT TO ASK HIM THAT KIYONE!" Sentaro cut in, glowering at her.

"OH! SO YOUR'RE MORE CONCERNED ABOUT THE CAPTAINS HEALTH THEN ME!" Kiyone screamed back loudly.

"DAMN RIGHT I AM!"

Ukitake rolled his eyes, today was going to be a long day "Kiyone, Sentaro settle down."

His two third seats paused in their bickering and both bowed deeply "Apologies Captain Ukitake!"

"Is there a reason for the two of you barging in here?" He asked knowing full well the answer is yes.

"We heard you coughing Sir," Sentaro answered quickly before Kiyone could.

Kiyone elbowed him hard in the ribs "A message arrived for you sir!"

"HEY! I WAS SUPPOSED TO TELL HIM THAT!" Sentaro yelled outraged.

"WELL YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO ASK HIM HOW HE WAS FEELING BUT WAS TOO SLOW!" Kiyone shot back.

"CAPTAIN YOU HAVE A VISITOR HERE TO SEE YOU!" Sentaro called out before Kiyone could.

"SENTARO! I WAS SUPPOSED-"

"WAS NOT!"

"WAS TOO!"

"WAS NOT!"

"WAS TOO!"

Ukitake thought his head were about to explode, he heard a knock at the office door and saw Momo Hinamori standing there looking a little unsure.

"WAS NOT!"

"WAS TOO!"

"WAS NOT!"

"WAS TOO!"

"Granddad" He looked over to the door he'd left ajar and saw Kotaro standing there with one hand clamped over his ear and Yori clutched tightly in his other arm. He was in his favourite green Pyjamas and were sporting the wildest bed head he'd ever seen.

"WAS NOT!"

"WAS TOO!"

"WAS NOT!"

"WAS TOO!"

"Captain Ukitake sir!" Came a different voice from the open office door, he glanced over and saw Rukia Kuchiki poking her head through the door behind Momo.

"WAS NOT!"

"WAS TOO!"

"WAS NOT!"

"WAS TOO!"

Ukitake took a deep breath and got to his feet, he slammed his hands down hard on the desk then yelled "QUIET!"

Silence fell immediately in his office. It were deafening, you could have heard a pin drop. It was also blissful to his head. Five equally shocked faces stared back at him, each a little fearful to even breathe. It was incredibly rare for anyone to see him angry like that and he felt a little guilty for it.

He heard a little sniff, followed by a sob and next thing he knew Kotaro's loud wails filled the room "Granddads mad at me" he cried out, clutching Yori tightly.

Ukitake moved away from his desk and crouched down in front of Kotaro "I'm sorry Kotaro, I'm not mad at you." He scooped the tiny infant up and rubbed his back in soothing circles.

He turned to face Kiyone and Sentaro who snapped to attention and bowed deeply "Our deepest apologies Captain Ukitake Sir!"

"Now lets start again" Ukitake said glancing between his two third seats.

Kiyone and Sentaro looked at each other and both opened their mouths to speak.

Ukitake raised an hand to cut them off before they even started "One at a time and without the arguments." Honestly the two of them together were hard work.

Sentaro straightened up out of his bow and indicated for Kiyone to go first. Kiyone nodded and straightened up too "Captain, a message arrived for you a short time ago from Captain Kyouraku."

Ukitake glanced at the clock it were barely past nine in the morning, what was Shunsui doing up so early, let alone sending him a message. He was also amazed that for once his Third seats seemed to be co-operating in a civil manner.

Ukitake stretched out his hand and took the little scrap of paper the message had been wrote down on from Kiyone and placed it on his desk. He then turned to face Sentaro "Captain! Lieutenant Hinamori is here requesting to see you Sir!"

"That I can see," Ukitake glanced over to her and smiled warmly, he felt relieved when he saw her relax slightly "Momo would you like to have a seat?" He invited indicating the couch.

Kotaro perked up in his arms when he heard Momo's name mentioned "Auntie Momo's here?" He began wiggling in his arms wanting to be put down.

Ukitake eased him down to the floor and as soon as his little feet met the wooden floor he was off dashing across the room towards Momo.

"Is there anything else?" He asked turning back to Kiyone and Sentaro.

"No Sir!" They both chimed together.

Ukitake nodded "Very well, please return to your work" he said, dismissing them both. They both left the office in a rather sombre fashion. He watched them as they passed by Rukia and then switched his gaze to her, "Rukia what can I do for you?" He asked politely.

"Good Morning Captain Ukitake," she greeted stepping into the room and walking over to him "Would you be able to sign these forms please."

He took the forms and quickly skimmed his eyes over them, satisfied everything seemed to be in order he grabbed his brush and signed them with his well practised signature. He handed the completed forms back and Rukia was soon on her way.

Ukitake took one long deep breath and let it out as a sigh, he glanced over to the couch and smiled when he saw Momo trying to get Kotaro to sit still for her, while she tried to tackle his wild bed head.

"Momo," he called trying to gain her attention, she was so intent on trying to fix Kotaro's hair, he wasn't entirely sure she'd heard him.

She pulled her eyes away from Kotaro and smiled at him "Yes Captain Ukitake?"

"Would you care for some tea?"

She gave a tiny nod "Yes please."

"I'll be right back." He grabbed the scrap of paper Kiyone had given him with the message on and retreated back into his quarters, heading for the kitchen.

He were quite curious about the message Shunsui had sent him and why he'd sent one so early.

He quickly grabbed a few items for Kotaro's breakfast and placed them on a tray along with the tea cups. As he waited for the water to boil he scanned the scrap of paper for Shunsui's message. It was a very short message – _Juu, need help!_

His eyes widened, how long ago had he sent this message? And why the hell did Shunsui need his help at this time of the day?

The water came to a boil and he poured it into the teapot then placed it with everything else on the tray. Ukitake scooped it up and hurried back through to his office, he deposited everything on the low table and perched himself on the couch.

Momo was still fighting with Kotaro's unruly hair and Ukitake couldn't help but smile "I think you're fighting a losing battle there Momo."

"He's just like his father," she answered trying to get a particular tuft of hair to lie flat. Kotaro tilted his head back to look up at Momo, he gave her an adorable grin. Momo smiled and hugged him "At least you're not a grumpy pants like Toushiro was at your age."

Ukitake laughed loudly at that comment then picked Kotaro's breakfast off the tray and placed it in front of him "Eat up young man, everyone needs a good breakfast to kick start the day."

Kotaro peered at the items before him, satisfied with the offering he tucked right in.

"Momo" he began after handing her a cup "I don't mean to seem rude but a slight emergency has come up" he said kindly.

"Oh I'm sorry Captain Ukitake, would you like me to leave?"

"Actually, I was hoping if it isn't too much of an inconvenience to you, would you be able to watch over Kotaro for a little while?"

Momo's eyes lit up "I'd be happy to, I always visit Kotaro and spend some time with him on my day off. Its why I'm here."

"Thank you Momo," Ukitake smiled warmly, "Shunsui seems to need my help," Ukitake picked up his tea and drained it in one go. "Kotaro," he placed his cup down then turned to face him "I need to help Uncle Shunsui out for a bit, so Momo is going to look after you for a bit OK?"

Kotaro stared at him for a second then slowly turned his gaze on Momo, he whipped his head back and grinned "OK Granddad."

"Good man," Ukitake leant closer and gave him a quick hug "You be a good boy."

Ukitake rose to his feet "Thank you Momo," he walked over to the door and bid them goodbye before heading out and flash stepping over to the Eighth.

* * *

><p>Arriving in the Eighth Division grounds Ukitake extended his senses, seeking out his friends familiar reiatsu. He frowned when he couldn't feel Shunsui's energy so he began to walk towards his quarters which would take him past Shunsui's and Nanao's shared office.<p>

On that note he decided to check in at the office on the way and ask Nanao if she knew what the problem were. He tried to seek out Nanao's energy too and was equally puzzled when he failed to detect it. Maybe she were in the office anyway and just happened to have a tight clamp on her energy today.

He reached the office door and tapped lightly on it, hearing nothing from inside he slid the door open and stepped inside. The place were deserted, there were the usual piles of paperwork on Nanao's desk and a lamp had been left on. An inkwell had been over turned and the dark stain that'd spread over the surface of the desk had dried out hours ago.

He saw Shunsui's pink haori discarded on the back of the couch, along with several empty sake bottles, and a big pile of paperwork had been placed by the side of the couch. It were obvious Shunsui had been drinking here last night, he hoped like hell his friend wasn't wasting his time over something trivial. It were also clear that Nanao hadn't stepped a foot in the office all morning considering the stacks of fresh paperwork and the still present sake bottles. She would have tossed them out as soon as she'd caught sight of them. No Nanao in the office, Shunsui apparently awake early and sending messages for help. Clearly something was amiss here, he couldn't help but feel a little anxious.

He walked out the office and carried on to Shunsui's quarters. As he rounded the corner he stopped when he saw Shunsui's front door wide open. He hurried over and stepped into his house, at the first glance everything seemed to be normal.

"SHUNSUI!" He yelled loudly "Are you in here!"

Receiving no reply Ukitake walked down the hallway and peered into the kitchen which was also deserted. He backed out and followed the hallway down towards the back of the house, "SHUNSUI!"

He paused when he heard a soft groan coming from the general direction of Shunsui's bedroom. He walked over to the bedroom door and paused when he heard another loud groan, Ukitake sighed as he went to slide the door open. He hoped like hell he wasn't about to walk in and see Shunsui and Nanao in bed together again. It'd happened once before and to be frank, the way he were feeling today he really could do without seeing his best friends hairy ass at this time in the morning.

He decided to play it safe this time and he politely knocked on the door "Shunsui, are you in there?" All he got this time was silence, so he slid the door open and scanned the room with his eyes. Shunsui's bed was empty much to his relief, however he did noticed his friends uniform discarded on the floor. From the direction of the bath room he could hear the noise of the shower running, "Shunsui?"

He heard a "Juu," followed by another groan coming from the bathroom.

Oh Kami, he thought before reminding himself the amount of times Shunsui had been there for him whenever he'd had an attack. It cant have been a nice sight for Shunsui, yet without fail his friend would always help him. Steeling himself he pushed the bathroom door open.

His eyes fell instantly on Shunsui who was slumped over on the floor, his head resting in a small pool of blood, one hand was resting over his left side ribs while the other was cradling his groin.

"SHUNSUI!" He dropped down to his knees by Shunsui's side and nudge his friends shoulder "What happened to you?"

Shunsui moaned and cracked an eye open, seeing Ukitake he shifted onto his side awkwardly "Juu, you came."

"Lets get you off the floor," Ukitake was thankful that Shunsui had a pair of boxers on at least. "Can you walk Shun?"

"I don't know," Shunsui answered, clearly in a lot of pain. Ukitake wondered how the hell he'd managed to get in such a mess, Shunsui was one tough guy. He'd seen his friend come back from countless battles without so much as a scratch on him.

"OK, lets just get you up for now," He grabbed Shunsui's right arm and pulled it over his shoulder, then he wrapped his other arm around Shunsui's middle.

"ARGH!" Shunsui cried out in pain "Juu, ribs.."

"Sorry," He readjusted his grip so he were holding Shunsui around his waist, "Ready?"

Shunsui nodded and Ukitake hoisted him as gently as possible to his feet. Shunsui's cry of pain echoed off the tiled walls of the bathroom.

Ukitake waited while Shunsui settled down, he'd managed to get his large friend back on his feet, but he seemed rather weak at the knees.

"Come on Shun," Ukitake started to guide him steadily out the bathroom, Shunsui took one step and groaned, followed by another, then another till they finally reached the bed. Ukitake helped him to sit down on the corner then disentangled himself from Shunsui.

Shunsui doubled up wrapping his arms around his middle, his loose hair fell forward creating a curtain, obscuring his face from Ukitake.

Ukitake looked closely at his friend, he knew Shunsui would kick up a fuss if he mentioned taking him to the Fourth. He couldn't however just leave him in the state he were in without seeking medical advise. "Shunsui.."

"Forget it Juu, I'm not going to the Fourth," Shunsui ground out quietly.

"I wasn't going to suggest it. Where are you injured?"

Shunsui straightened up a little bit and tossed his loose wet curls out of his face. Ukitake winced when he caught sight of the deep bruising around Shunsui's left eye, the source of the blood on the floor seemed to have come from a small gash above his temple "Face," Shunsui then lifted his left arm revealing heavy bruising on his side "Left side ribs."

"Anywhere else?" Ukitake prompted.

Shunsui still refusing to look Ukitake in the eye quietly muttered "Groin."

Not quite hearing him Ukitake repeated what he thought he'd heard "Your groin?"

"That's what I said dammit Juu," Shunsui snapped back, he doubled over again resting one hand over his sore ribs, "I'm sorry old friend."

"Its all right Shunsui," Ukitake discreetly summoned a hell butterfly and relayed his message by thought, rather then speaking aloud, he sent it off and it fluttered out the room silently.

Ukitake returned his attention back to Shunsui and noticed him shuffling around clearly uncomfortable, he were about to ask him if everything were all right when Shunsui glanced at him and caught him looking.

"Juu, if you have something to say, you can just say it," Shunsui shifted again rather stiffly.

"You don't seem very comfortable Shun, do you need anything?"

"My boxers are soaked," Shunsui grunted lightly "Could you pass me a pair out of that drawer," He pointed over to a set of drawers sat opposite him.

Ukitake stepped over to the drawer and pulled a pair out at random, he passed them to Shunsui, "I'll just step outside for a minute," he turned on his heel and strolled over to the door "Shunsui" he called over his shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"I know you don't want to go to the Fourth but its clear you need medical attention."

"Let me guess.." Shunsui lifted his head and stared back "Retsu's on her way, right?"

"Yes I am Shunsui," Unohana replied sliding the door open and stepping into the room.

Shunsui sighed heavily, "Look its not that I don't appreciate it or anything, but really...I'm fine."

Unohana glided across the room and stopped in front of Shunsui, she bent down slightly to look at his face "Really Shunsui? Well if you feel fine could you just stand up for a minute for me please."

Shunsui glowered at her, his jaw clenching tightly. It were painfully obvious to all three of them that it were impossible for him to do so.

She stepped around to his side and held one of his arms "Juushiro can you grab his other arm please," Ukitake complied and stepped over to the bed "I just want to ease you gently onto the bed so you can lie back Shunsui."

After much grumbling and swearing on Shunsui's part, Ukitake and Unohana soon had him laid out on the bed.

Unohana first checked Shunsui's eye, all it required were a simple healing kido to stitch the shallow gash closed, "How does that feel now Shunsui?" Unohana asked checking over the sealed wound.

"Better."

"Any pain?" Unohana ran two fingers glowing with kido around his temple and cheek bone.

"Bit sore."

Unohana nodded satisfied, "It will be a bit sore for a few days, and I'm afraid the bruising will take awhile to fade."

Shunsui just shrugged and Unohana moved on to checking his ribs "Hmm three cracked ribs and the rest are badly bruised."

Shunsui cried out when her kido glowing hands ran over his ribs and he felt them pop as the kido mended the cracks. Unohana flicked her wrist and the kido spell vanished, she then reached into her medical bag and pulled some bandaging out to strap his ribs up. "How does that feel now?" She asked once the task had been completed.

"Fine I guess."

Unohana straightened up and swept her eyes over the rest of his body, she couldn't see any other obvious injuries, "Are you injured anywhere else Shunsui?"

Shunsui grew rigid and stared straight up at the ceiling ignoring the question.

"Shunsui," Ukitake warned.

Shunsui folded his arms across his well muscled chest, wincing slightly when the motion caused a spasm of pain in his ribs "My groin... Its excruciating."

Unohana nodded "I expect that's the reason why you cant walk."

Shunsui just nodded and returned his gaze back to the ceiling and slid his eyes shut.

"I'm sorry Shunsui, but I will need to take your boxers off to examine you," Unohana stated apologetically.

"Fine," he answered quietly.

Ukitake shared a look with Unohana, both of them were surprised when Shunsui failed to make some sort of perverted comment like he usually would. Unohana slowly peeled off Shunsui's boxers, the wet fabric rolled over and got tangled up as she pulled them away.

Unohana winced when she caught sight of the injured area "Juushiro can you fetch me a towel please," Ukitake nodded and left the room. She examined him closely, the whole of his genital area was a deep purple colour and one of his testicles were badly swollen. Ukitake returned a second later with a towel in hand. "It seems you have a ruptured testicle Shunsui."

Shunsui remained stubbornly quiet. Unohana flicked her wrists and a strong green healing kido glowed around her hands, she lowered her hands and began the healing process.

Fifteen minutes later Unohana straightened up again and the glowing kido faded from her hands "All done Shunsui," She kindly picked up the fresh pair of boxes and slipped them back on him.

Unohana stepped closer and rested a hand on Shunsui's forehead, he peeked his eyes open and stared back blankly, "You're going to feel quite sore for a good few days Shunsui. I strongly advise you to take it easy and rest."

Ukitake who'd been staring out the window the whole time Unohana had been treating Shunsui, came and stood by the bed again "Shunsui, how did you manage to get so badly injured?"

Shunsui was quiet for a long time before he replied in a hollow voice "I slipped."

Ukitake glanced at Unohana, like him she wasn't convinced and knew that Shunsui was lying to them. Hell Shunsui couldn't even be bothered to come up with a plausible lie.

"Shun, do you want us to find out where Nanao is and tell her about your.. accident?" Ukitake asked staring intently at his friend trying to gauge a reaction.

Shunsui's face appeared to shut down completely, he awkwardly rolled onto his side so that his back were to them "No its OK, I wouldn't bother her while she's busy."

Ukitake frowned "Do you want me to stay here for a bit then?"

"No, you should go Juu. I'll only be sleeping anyway."

Feeling quite annoyed with the sudden brush off, and quite concerned at the lack of details from Shunsui and the blatant lies, Ukitake quietly followed Unohana out of Shunsui's bedroom. Before closing the door he glanced one final time at Shunsui "I'll be back later Shunsui to check on you. Maybe then you'll tell me just what the hell happened."

"Maybe" Shunsui grunted quietly.

Ukitake rolled his eyes and slid the door shut with a snap. He joined Unohana outside after making sure Shunsui's front door was shut properly this time.

"He's lying to us Retsu."

"I know Juushiro. I think he's ashamed to tell us exactly how he received those injuries," Unohana replied softly.

"He couldn't even be bothered to make up a plausible lie," Ukitake sighed frustrated "I mean come on, is it even possible to rupture a testicle by slipping over Retsu?"

"No its not Juu, to have received a severe injury like his.." Unohana paused thinking it over "He would've had to have been kicked or kneed full force by someone who is considerably stronger then him."

"We should really find Nanao and let her know what's happened," Ukitake said after several minutes of silence.

"I don't think that would be a wise idea at the moment Juushiro," Unohana said before turning on the spot and facing Shunsui's door. She slowly raised her hand and placed a high level kido barrier on the door "You saw his reaction when you mentioned telling her."

"Well at the least, we should find her and make sure she's all right too," Ukitake hooked a finger under his chin "I just find it strange that Shunsui asked me for help rather then Nanao, she would've been closer by if she were in the office. Why wait for me to get all the way over here from my Division."

"If she were in the office?" Unohana questioned "Are you saying she wasn't there?"

"No Retsu, I looked in on the way to Shunsui's, I figured she might know what were going on. The office was empty when I got there, I doubt Nanao had even set foot in it before I got there."

"Hmm that is strange," Unohana agreed "I cant seem to sense her presense anywhere either."

"Do you think that maybe she knows exactly what's happened to Shunsui?" Ukitake asked, hating the fact that he were pointing an accusing finger.

"Its possible, but until we either find Nanao or Shunsui opens up and tells us exactly what happened," Unohana paused "There's not a lot we can do for the time being."

Ukitake frowned, the whole situation just felt so wrong to him.


	8. Chapter 8

Hello! I'm surprised myself how quickly this chapter came out. I know this Chapter features mostly Shun and Nanao, however next Chapter we'll be picking up Toushiro and Rangiku's investigation, so please bare with me :) As always, thank you for the lovely reviews.

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 8<p>

'_Kotaro...' The warm soft voice gently called out to him. _

"_Mummy? Daddy?"_

_'No child. Open your eyes.' The voice was so softly spoken it sounded almost far away and distant. Yet at the same time it felt as though it were wrapping itself around him._

_Kotaro peeked his eyes open and had to blink several times while his eyes adjusted to the magnificent golden light surrounding him. Realising he were lying down on the ground, he pulled himself up and found himself in a small clearing surrounded by a vast amount of trees. The trunks stood closely together offering no way of getting in or out of the clearing. _

"_Where am I?" He wondered aloud getting to his feet. The ground was covered with a thick blanket of leaves, a vibrant mixture of deep reds, burnt oranges and golden browns. His bare feet were buried deeply in the crunchy carpet, he wiggled his toes and felt something soft and cool beneath his feet. He bent down and brushed a few leaves away and found lush green grass beneath the leaves._

_He straightened back up and tilted his head back to stare up towards the sky. The golden sunlight shone through the many branches and leaves, adding a nice glow to the already vibrant kaleidoscope of colours._

_A cool breeze engulfed him, rustling the trees branches and swirling the many leaves beneath his feet. His hair whipped around his face and the thin cotton tunic he wore clung to his small frame. _

_'Kotaro, this way child.' This time the softly spoken voice came from behind. He slowly turned on his heel and saw that a gap had formed between two trees, which acted as a pathway._

_He followed the pathway without hesitation, he felt comfortable and safe here, knowing deep down no harm could befall him while he were here._

_The path eventually led him to a much larger clearing then the first one, his eyes widened at the beautiful meadow that spread out before him._

"_Wow."_

_Another gust of wind engulfed him, pushing him forward "Come Kotaro, don't be shy child."_

"_Where are you?"_

"_See that large red maple tree sitting atop the hill?" Kotaro glanced slightly to his right and saw the grassy hillside rising before him. Just as the voice had said, he saw the giant red tree standing proudly on top of the hill._

_He saw something move under the tree and thought he glimpsed a longish orange tail. He gasped, it looked very similar to the orange monster that he'd dreamt about before..._

_He rubbed his eyes with his fists, trying to determine whether he were dreaming again, he had to be, surely a place like this could never exist._

_He saw the orange tail flick around again and his stomach knotted in fear._

_The cool wind blew around him again, comforting him "Clearly, you're not ready to meet me yet young one," the voice full of warmth sounded a little amused, "But know this. Once you feel ready to meet me, you can find me on top of that hill, Kotaro."_

_The wind gusting around him picked up speed and a large whirlwind of colourful leaves engulfed him, blocking his view of this strange yet beautiful place. The bright golden light from before surrounded him and he felt oddly sleepy and very faintly he heard the voice one last time "Soon child."_

He squeezed his eyes tightly shut as the light grew too strong. He felt as though he were floating upwards and soon the light dimmed away. Seconds later a new light appeared before him and he slowly blinked his eyes open again to find himself staring up at a familiar ceiling.

He heard movement to one side and then a familiar face came into view and smiled down at him "Hello sleepy head, did you have a nice nap."

Kotaro sat up and peered into his face, "Granddad?"

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><p>Nanao woke up with a pounding head. She cracked her eyes open and the room spun around her sickeningly. The brief glimpse she had of the room around her before she slammed her eyes closed again, seemed unfamiliar to her. Her body felt heavy and weak, her mind slow and foggy.<p>

She felt confused and disorientated, where the hell were she?

Nanao tried to open her eyes again, this time much slower. It were an awful sensation watching the room spin but after a few seconds the swirling slowed down and her eyesight settled down. She noticed everything seemed blurry and it took a few seconds to realise she didn't have her glasses on.

She slowly sat herself up and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. Thankfully she were still dressed, however her feet felt cold and she noticed no tabi or sandals on her feet. Her right foot felt painful and at a quick glance, she saw deep purple bruising. How did that happen?

Nanao clenched her fists and noticed how sore her left wrist felt, on closer inspection she saw yet more deep bruises ringing her wrist, definitely the result of someone gripping her way too tightly.

She shook her head and regretted it as a deep throb spread behind her temples. She lifted a hand to cradle her head. How the hell did she get in such a state.

She tried to remember the last thing she could recall doing, which proved difficult when she couldn't even recall what day it was. Think! She told herself.

When nothing came to her she decided to focus instead on finding out where she were. She glanced around the room again, it took a few seconds but she soon recognized where she were. She were in her own quarters. The reason why it seemed unfamiliar at first glance was because it were so bare, having moved the majority of her belongings to Shunsui's house.

"Shunsui!" She called out aloud.

Why was she here in her old abandoned room and not at Shunsui's place?

Nanao closed her eyes again and focused really hard on trying to remember. The absolute last thing she could remember was visiting Ukitake and Kotaro. She distinctly remembered being splashed by one of Captain Ukitake's giant koi fish.

After that, everything seemed like one giant blank and it scared her. She looked once more at her foot and wrist, how did that happen. She brought her hand up to rub her temples, her fingers froze mid stroke when she felt a hard lump on her forehead.

Nanao quickly scanned around the room trying to locate her glasses and frowned when she failed to spot them. She took a deep breath then attempted to seek out Shunsui's presense, surely he would know something.

She had a little trouble seeking him out at first, her brain felt really foggy and if she tried too hard her head would throb painfully.

Finally she came across Shunsui's presense at his quarters and judging by the steady flow of his energy, he were most likely sleeping.

Nanao cautiously rose to her feet, her head swam again but soon settled down. She gingerly stepped over to the door and slid it open, the sunlight that came flooding through blinded her, making her already fragile head worse.

She sighed heavily, whatever day it happened to be at least she knew now it were late afternoon. Luckily the walk to Shunsui's place was a short one and she hoped like hell she wouldn't bump into anyone on the way, she felt completely out of it.

Nanao stepped out of her room and her foot landed in a deep puddle. Wonderful, she thought dryly, cursing the recent rainstorm. She took one step forward, then limped on her sore foot, then another. She could do this she told herself, surely if anyone saw her they would have the sense to keep their mouths shut.

Ten minutes later she arrived outside Shunsui's house. Unfortunately she'd ran into several squad members on the way, each and every one of them had the same shocked expression on their face, which was then followed by hushed whispers behind her back. She couldn't blame them really, it must have been strange for them to see her hobbling along with one purple foot, splashing bare footed through the puddles. That or the fact her hair wasn't in its usual clip and she had no glasses on.

She ran a hand over her temples and felt the hard lump on her forehead again, she hadn't been able to check herself in a mirror and she suspected that maybe she were sporting a big bruise on her forehead. Damn.

She reached a hand out to push Shunsui's front door open. She pulled her hand back quickly when she felt the crackle of a high level kido barrier. Strange, Shunsui was never one to bother with barriers on his doors.

It was a good thing she were a Kido Master, she were quite adept at undoing these types of barriers. She hovered her palm over the pulsating barrier, feeling out the subtle intricate patterns of the spell. She found a tiny instability in the field and injected just a tiny amount of her reiatsu into it. The barrier instantly destabilized and collapsed leaving her free to pass right on through. Not even sparing a thought as to who put the barrier up in the first place, she stepped through the threshold and entered Shunsui's home.

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><p>Shunsui took a deep breath then slowly rolled himself over onto his side. He sighed appreciatively, glad that he were no longer lying on his back. He were feeling quite sore down below and he could tell that he was badly swollen, rolling onto his side had helped to ease the pressure somewhat.<p>

He'd given up trying to fall asleep quite sometime ago, sleep was impossible for him with his mind working over time. He felt guilty for lying to Juushiro and giving him the cold shoulder, his friend had always been there for him over the years, no matter what. He hoped Ukitake wouldn't be too pissed with him.

_"I'll be back later Shunsui to check on you. Maybe then you'll tell me just what the hell happened."_

'I'm sorry old friend, but I cant tell you,' He thought to himself, 'I don't think you'd understand. Hell even I'm having trouble understanding myself.'

He closed his eyes and allowed his mind to drift back to earlier that morning, so far he'd been resolutely trying to avoid thinking about it. But he couldn't keep it up much longer.

_Shunsui woke up and stretched lazily, reaching over to drape his arm over his lovely Nanao-chan's waist. He frowned when his hand met thin air. He cracked his eyes open and found an empty spot next to him._

_He placed his hand on her vacant space and could feel the warmth left behind by her body. Where ever she was, she hadn't been gone long. He leaned over and rested his cheek against the warm sheet and breathed in deeply, Nanao's scent flooded his nose pleasantly._

_He heard movement in the bathroom and the sound of the shower running reached his ears. She hadn't gone far, he smiled. _

_Shunsui sat up tossing his hair out of his face and stretched his arms high above his head. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and got to his feet, walking silently over to the bathroom door._

"_Nanao-chan," He called softly while tapping lightly on the door, "Can I come in?"_

_Hearing no reply he pushed the bathroom door open and found Nanao in the shower with her back to him, he could tell from her posture that she were feeling tense._

_He stepped over to the shower and slowly placed his hands on her shoulders, he gasped at the cold feel of her body. The water cascading down her from the shower was freezing cold._

Shunsui was pulled from his thoughts momentarily when he thought he heard his front door opening then closing again. He listened closely but when there were no more sounds, he shrugged it off and returned to his brooding.

_Nanao flinched under his touch, yet made no comment or acknowledged his presense in any way. He stepped into the shower and gasped loudly as the freezing cold water hit his body, his boxers became soaked through in a matter of seconds and clung to his skin._

"_Nanao-chan, you'll freeze to death taking a shower like this," He reached around her body and turned the dial back over to the left. It took a few seconds for the water to change temperature, but soon they were surrounded by lovely warm water and steam._

_Shunsui returned his hands to her shoulders and began rubbing warmth back into her body, "How are you feeling this morning Nanao-chan?"_

_When she didn't reply, he shifted to the side so he could see her face. Nanao stared straight ahead with a blank look on her face, he noticed she had dark bags under her eyes and her skin had a sickly paleness about it. Just like last night in the office. He knew she'd fallen asleep, he was the one who'd carried her home, but he wondered if she must have woken up again during the night._

_Maybe she'd fallen asleep standing up and with her eyes open. He manoeuvred himself so he were standing in front of her, he saw her blink and then her gaze shifted to him and a frown blossomed across her features._

_He moved so he were standing behind her again, then he reached up and grabbed a bottle of her shampoo off the shelf. He squeezed a small amount into his palm, then put the bottle back on the shelf._

_Smiling he began to slowly massage the shampoo into her hair. Nanao tilted her head back into his touch and Shunsui leant down slightly to plant a few kisses up and down her throat, "You don't look so well today, Nanao."_

_He reached over to the shelf and plucked Nanao's favourite shower gel off it, "Don't worry, I'll look after you."_

_He squeezed a good amount into the palms of his hands and then he let some trickle down her body. Returning his hands to her neck he began to gently kneed her tight muscles, while at the same time massaging her neck and shoulders so the gel foamed up._

_His hands gently made their way down Nanao's back, massaging the gel into every inch of her skin. He ran his hands around her waist and pulled her closer, snuggling into her back and planting more kisses up and down her neck. He began to slowly rub her stomach in circles spreading the foam across her front._

_Shunsui dipped an index finger into her belly button and wriggled his digit around before removing it and running his hand up towards her breasts. He brought his other hand up from her waist and gently cupped each of her breasts and began circling them sensually._

_Nothing. Nanao gave no reaction what so ever. He could tell that her body had relaxed somewhat, but she remained a stoic ice queen. This worried him._

_He pulled away from her and took a step back, he placed his hands back on her shoulders and turned her around so she were facing him. He knelt down in front of her and wrapped his arms around her waist pulling her closer to him. He rested his cheek against her stomach and his hands began wondering down her lower back and skimming over her bottom._

_He glanced back up at her and saw a strange flicker of emotion cross her face, he weren't entirely sure whether it were a good thing or not. _

"_Hmm you smell wonderful," He decided to stop there and he rose back to his feet. He admired his handy work and placed both his hands on her hips "My lovely soapy Nanao-chan."_

_Shunsui guided her back a couple steps so she were now under the shower head. The white soap suds contrasted nicely with her black hair as the water rinsed them away, he watched fascinated as the rest of the suds on her body glided off her milky skin._

Shunsui snapped his eyes open when he heard footsteps walking slowly down the hallway. His eyebrows knitted together in annoyance, he couldn't tell who it were, they had masked their presense.

He figured it would be Juushiro coming to check on him and most likely he would try and interrogate him. He closed his eyes and slowed his breathing right down, hoping Juu would see that he were asleep and then leave. He didn't like being dishonest with his friend, but he really needed the space.

_He stepped under the shower himself and cupped her cheeks with his hands "So beautiful," he leant in and captured her lips._

_He realised she wasn't responding to him and just as he were about to pull away Nanao's lips began to move against his. He smiled inside, he'd finally gotten through to her it seemed. _

_Nanao had always guarded her emotions closely, it had taken him so long to get her to open up to him and even longer for their relationship to develop to where it was now. He knew well enough if Nanao had something on her mind, it were no use forcing her to share her worries, she would always come around in her own time. It was very fortunate that he were a patient man._

_Just as he were about to deepen the kiss, he felt a shift in her energy, just like at Ukitake's the day before._

_Nanao's hand came up between them and rested against his chest, she began to struggle and tried to shove him away from her. "_

_Shunsui broke off the kiss and his hands fell away from her face and rested instead on her shoulders. He took a step back and held her at arms length, "Easy Nanao-chan."_

"_Get away from me," her eyes flashed dangerously "Get off me!" She hissed at him._

"_I'm not going to hurt you Nanao," Shunsui could feel her energy rising rapidly, it were definitely Nanao's reiatsu however he could feel another type of energy swirling within her, fighting against her own. It felt dark and heavy._

_He met her eyes and a jolt went through his stomach, the eyes staring back at him were not Nanao's usual dark blues, but rather inky black and angry looking._

_Her whole body began to glow a soft purple colour, Shunsui gripped her shoulders tightly. Nanao blinked a few times and Shunsui saw her eyes return to her normal blues. She met his gaze and he saw the pain in her eyes "Shunsui..I cant."_

"_Stay with me!" He yelled. He could feel the dark presense slowly taking over her "Fight it Nanao-chan! That's an order!"_

"_NO!" She screamed before shoving him back with unnatural strength._

_His back slammed against the wall behind him and he rebounded off again. He kept his footing and he slipped into a stance. Inside his mind he were facing a dilemma, whatever it was that seemed to have come over Nanao, seemed intent on attacking him. But he wasn't keen on fighting back. If he did fight back then he would be hurting Nanao, he just couldn't do it. He just couldn't hit a lady, especially his lady. _

_Shunsui knew what he had to do, the best thing would be to try and restrain her. _

_Nanao lunged at him and tried grabbing at his throat, he managed to grab both of her hands preventing her from trying to strangle the life out of him, "Please stop Nanao-chan," he said softly "Please stop. This isn't you."_

_Nanao stopped struggling and stared into his eyes, he stared right back and saw deep blue eyes battling inky blacks for dominance. He wasn't too sure exactly what was going on, but it seemed like the real fight was happening internally. Nanao wasn't lashing out at him, she were fighting whatever force was trying to take over her from the inside. _

_Shunsui felt Nanao's arms slacken and she stumbled closer to him, resting her hands on his shoulders. She were breathing heavily and Shunsui rested both his hands on her waist for support, "Its OK Nanao-chan." _

_Nanao's dark blue eyes stared up at him "Shunsui," she whispered breathlessly._

"_Don't let it beat you Nanao."_

"_You cant," She shook her head from side to side "You cant..."_

_Shunsui looked at her puzzled "I cant what?"_

"_Trust me.." _

_Shunsui's eyes widened, he were about to argue back when Nanao suddenly raised her knee and rammed it straight up into his groin. He forgot how to breathe. The force of it made his knees go weak and his legs completely crumpled beneath him._

_He sunk to the floor gasping for breath and crying out in pain, his eyes were streaming. He blinked a few times and his vision came back into focus, just as Nanao's feet turned on the spot to leave._

_Despite his pain he took a deep breath and lurched forwards, latching onto Nanao's left wrist with his right hand, preventing her from running away "Nanao!" he gasped._

_His left hand went to cradle his groin, Nanao tried to yank her wrist free so he increased the pressure, there were no way he could let her leave. Not in her current state._

"_LET GO OF ME!" She commanded._

_Shunsui shook his head feeling a little sick "You know I cant do that." _

_Nanao switched her stance so she were facing him. Without any warning and with incredible speed, her back leg came swinging round and her foot planted itself squarely in his ribs. It were so quick he had no time to move his hand up from his groin and block the blow. For the second time in less then a few minutes he forgot how to breath again. On impact he could have sworn he felt some ribs crack. His grip on Nanao's wrist loosened a tiny bit and she desperately tried to yank it free. He clamped down really hard on her wrist digging his nails in, any other time it would have been nothing short of abusive._

_The speed and strength that she'd hit him with was unnatural. No way could Nanao-chan ever inflict that kind of pain and damage on him. But it wasn't Nanao that was hitting out at him. It was the strange dark energy within her calling the shots. Yet even with that knowledge, he still refused to lift a finger to Nanao, or hurt her in anyway, shape or form. _

"_Nanao, stop it!" His voice were hoarse from the recent impact. His other hand was now fisted and he were punching the floor in a bid to stem the pain._

_Quick as lightening her foot came around again, Shunsui could only screw his eyes up and grit his teeth as her foot pounded into the side of his face. A blinding, sickening pain erupted above his left eye, hot needles of pain spreading across his temples and down into his cheek, jaw and ear._

_He blinked till his white vision cleared, Nanao tugged one final time and his hand let go of her wrist. She twisted around, stumbling as she went, he winced as he saw her forehead collide with the edge of the bathroom door. She righted herself and disappeared out of the bathroom and out of sight._

"_Nanao-chan," he muttered sadly before he slumped to the floor, the cold floor tiles felt oddly soothing to his face._

Shunsui jumped slightly when he heard his bedroom door slide open. The person who stepped into his room was really light on their feet. He felt the bed dip as a weight settled on it and the next thing he knew someone placed a warm hand on his shoulder.

"Shunsui."

His eyes went wide and he rolled onto his back much to fast, he grunted when he felt his ribs jar painfully. With a monumental effort he pulled himself up into a sitting position. He stared at the face before him, her deep blue eyes sparkled back at him.

He reached out and cupped her chin "Nanao-chan?"

When she caught sight of his strapped up ribs and bruised face, her eyes went wide "God what happened to you?"

Shunsui stiffened, his jaw clenched tightly shut. He examined Nanao very closely. Her skin didn't seem as pale as the last time he saw her, the dark circles under her eyes were less prominent and her face seemed more animated now, more like her old self. He thought back to that awful blank expression she had on her face in the shower, she seemed like a completely different person now. How could someone possibly change so much in the space of a day. Its like what happened between them this morning never happened at all. But it had, his injuries were all too real. He could see a large bump on Nanao's forehead where she'd collided with the door, the dark bruising spreading out around it was a stark contrast against her pale skin.

"Nanao-chan," he squinted his eyes as he looked at her, "Where have you been?"

She looked away from him and he saw the puzzled look on her face "I just woke up."

"Where?" He prompted.

"In my... quarters," she frowned like she were trying to recall something, "I cant seem to remember much."

He tilted her chin towards him "What's the last thing you can remember?"

"Before waking up just now?" She asked, he just nodded and she continued "Captain Ukitake's koi pond.. playing with Kotaro," she sighed a little frustrated "Everything seems like one big blank after that.

'So she didn't know what she were doing,' Shunsui thought to himself, he didn't know whether to be glad or concerned. He shifted slightly and his ribs went into a sharp spasm. Considering his injuries he decided to go with concerned.

"Look at you," Nanao saw him wince and pushed his shoulders back so he would lie down, "What happened?"

Should he tell Nanao that she was responsible for his injuries? That it was her who beat him up? He felt like he were treading on eggshells here, he couldn't tell Ukitake the truth because he feared his friend would laugh at him for getting beaten up so badly by a woman. He couldn't really tell Nanao the truth, how could he hold her accountable when she wasn't even aware of her actions at the time? He couldn't stand to see what her reaction would be when he told her that she did this to him.

He couldn't force Nanao to get checked over by Unohana. He could tell by her energy now that everything felt perfectly fine, having a check up now would just prove a waste of time while she was stable.

What troubled him was, what would happen if word got out that Nanao had become unstable. He knew she were an incredibly strong and well adept kido master, several times he'd been on the receiving end of it. What transpired between them in the bathroom would have been enough to have seen her locked away. He shuddered at the thought, he couldn't let that happen to her.

And there he found his answer. Nobody needed to know about this, nobody could know about this. Not even Nanao-chan herself.

He would have to keep his silence and keep an incredibly close eye on her. If what ever happened in the bathroom happened again, he would deal with it when it happened.

"Shunsui?" Nanao squeezed his arm, "What's wrong?"

He looked at her and saw genuine concern in her face, he smiled warmly at her "Nothing Nanao-chan, I'm just feeling a little sore. I did bump my head pretty hard."

"How-" She began but Shunsui cut her off.

"Its nothing, I was taking a shower and I slipped over. I bumped my head and caught my ribs."

Nanao leant forward and kissed his bruised temple "Is there anything you need?"

Shunsui shifted around until he felt more comfortable, once he'd found a nice spot he gently grabbed Nanao's arm and guided her down next to him. She lay next to him and snuggled up to his side "Just stay with me for a bit Nanao-chan."

"Shunsui, what happened between visiting Captain Ukitake and now?" Nanao asked.

"Not much," he frowned.

Nanao absent-mindedly rubbed the wrist that he'd hung onto far too tightly, this wasn't lost on him and he felt a pang of guilt. She flexed her sore wrist, "I'm not fond of having a blank in my memory like this."

"Nanao, you've been over working yourself so much lately," he glanced to his side and saw that she had her eyes closed, "Maybe its a lack of sleep catching up with you."

"Maybe," Nanao shuffled around and groaned softly when her foot nudged Shunsui's shin. "Are you OK Nanao-chan?"

"Yeah, my foots just a bit sore," She lifted it up so he could see it.

Shunsui baulked, her foot was twice its normal size and very purple. Jeez how hard did she kick him?

Nanao misinterpreted his look of horror, "It looks worse then what it feels. I just don't know how I did it." She ran a hand across her forehead and her fingers froze when they brushed over the lump on her forehead.

Shunsui looked away from her guiltily but she caught him looking "Are you sure nothing happened?"

He stared at her for several minutes. Maybe keeping from her what'd happened between them was going to prove a lot harder then what he thought.

"No Nanao-chan," He looked away and snuggled into his pillow "Nothing happened."

He saw Nanao's eyebrows furrow, 'please just let it drop' he thought.

Nanao sighed and snuggled closer into his side, for now she decided she would just let it drop. She knew he was keeping something from her and she had full intentions of finding out what.

As they held each other and slowly drifted off to sleep, Shunsui's words from the previous day came back to him.

_"Don't worry Nanao-chan, I'll always love and protect you, no matter what."_

No matter what. He reminded himself as he fell into a troubled slumber.


	9. Chapter 9

Hiya! I'm back with another chapter. Thank you to my reviewers, I'm relieved that you enjoyed the last chapter. I did feel a bit nervous about posting it, after all domestic abuse is a sensitive subject. A few chapters ago I mentioned that at least one of my chars would be suffering horribly in this story. If you guessed Nanao - Wrong! I'm afraid its going to be poor Shunsui. Enough of my ramblings =) Happy Reading.

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 9<p>

It was a new day in the Soul Society and a chilly wind kicked up around Ukitake as he strolled through the quiet streets of the Seireitei. Shivering he pulled his white haori tighter around his shoulders, he looked down at his young companion who was plodding along by his side unaffected by the early morning cold.

He smiled when Kotaro yawned and rubbed his eyes sleepily, "Granddad, why are we awake so early?"

Ukitake chuckled and rested his hand on Kotaro's head "I have to attend a Captains meeting Kotaro."

"Daddy says I'm not allowed to go to Captain's meeting with him," Kotaro's eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"He's quite right young man," Ukitake guided him forwards with his hand between Kotaro's shoulders.

"Will Gran-Gran be there?"

"Yes, you'll get to see her before the meeting starts."

"And will Uncle Shun-shun be there?"

"He should be," Ukitake frowned, that's if his friend could walk yet.

"What about me then!" Kotaro exclaimed, his teal eyes going wide, "Who looks after me?"

Ukitake laughed and scooped Kotaro up into his arms, "Don't fret Kotaro, Nanao's meeting us outside the First and you'll be going with her."

"I'll draw a picture for Auntie Nan-nan," Kotaro's face lit up pleased, before falling into a deep scowl a second later "Ow, I forgot my crayons."

"I have them in my pocket," Ukitake smiled.

They reached the foot of the stone steps that would lead them to the upper courtyard area situated outside the main entrance to the First. Ukitake placed Kotaro down on his feet and they began the long ascent up the steps.

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><p>Toushiro re-read the note clutched in his right hand then stared down at the two earpieces resting on the palm of his hand.<p>

"What you got there Toshi?" Rangiku asked bounding over to him and grabbing him from behind.

"Special delivery from the Soul Society," he replied rechecking the note "There's one each for us," he gave Rangiku the earpiece that'd been labelled for her use.

Rangiku held it up and examined it closely "Hmm not very pretty, are they?"

The earpiece crackled to life and Kurotsuchi's rusty voice blared out that them, "I didn't design them to be pretty, Lieutenant."

"Kurotsuchi?" Toushiro questioned warily "What do you want?"

"I'm simply establishing whether my latest invention is working correctly. I assume you can hear me clearly enough?"

"Yes," Toushiro scowled. Over the years he'd grown increasingly wary of Kurotsuchi's inventions.

"Good, then listen up," Kurotsuchi screeched. Toushiro glanced at Rangiku and she rolled her eyes, "I'm to inform you that there is a Captains meeting scheduled to start in thirty minutes. Can you ensure that you are wearing the earpiece at that time."

"Sure," Toushiro's scowl deepened. So much for getting out of the Captains meeting by coming to the world of the living, "Kurotsuchi, what exactly are these for?"

"These will completely revolutionize the way we hold captains meetings in the future!"

Toushiro glanced at Rangiku and raised a skeptical eyebrow, "How?"

"By eliminating the pointless need to gather together. One simply puts on the earpiece and tunes into the meeting, leaving one free to still pursue whatever task needs their attention. Never again will I have to leave halfway through an experiment to waste time listening to unimportant issues regarding other squads..."

Toushiro sighed and tuned out of Kurotsuchi's little rant about the other 'inferior' squads and looked the earpiece over. It was a good concept but he couldn't actually see it going ahead, the Head-Captain was set in his ways after centuries of running the Gotei 13. He clicked the little 'Off' button and pocketed the earpiece.

"Come on Rangiku, I want to get started on flushing out that Hollow."

Rangiku fell into step beside him "Do you really think it will show itself today?"

"Positive, I swiped the log book yesterday that records all accidents, breakdowns and derailments," Toushiro looked at Rangiku when he heard her gasp.

"Toshi are you even allowed to do that?"

"Its OK. I've put it back already, I doubt they even missed it," The two of them hurried down the steps that led down to the main platform area.

"Its still stealing..." Rangiku trailed off at the icy look Toushiro threw her way, "Anyway moving on. Did you find out anything important?"

"All the so called crashes and derailments seem to happen on a Tuesday."

"Today's Tuesday," Rangiku nodded as they flashed over the ticket barrier. After their first scouting mission down here, they'd decided that gigai's would just be an unwanted complication.

"Right, and the Hollow always goes for the busiest route, with the most populated train. Which coincidentally is usually the early morning rush hour, or the late afternoon rush hour," Toushiro rummaged around for his phone, "There are five different train routes down here. The track we investigated the other day was the busiest route until they closed it down. The two minor routes were closed just to be on the safe side leaving only these two routes running."

"So there's going to be plenty of humans on these trains," Rangiku concluded, "So what's your plan?"

"We each take a route and ride the trains," He pulled Kurotsuchi's earpiece out of his pocket, "In the note from the Soul Society it mentioned that these earpieces can be used to communicate between each other."

Rangiku turned her earpiece on and clipped it onto her ear. She then grinned at him before flash stepping away. He pulled his own earpiece out and attached it to his ear, "Erm.. Rangiku can you hear me?"

"Is like you're right next to me!" Her familiar cheery voice chirped in his ear.

"Good so..." His vision went black and the back of his head was squished against two large mounds of flesh, "Rangiku!" He shook her off and continued on, "I don't like the idea of splitting up, but we will cover more ground faster this way."

Rangiku saw the uneasy look on his face "Maintain constant communication?"

"At all times." Toushiro frowned, "Rangiku its a strong Hollow, possibly a Menos and it seems like its been utilizing lesser Hollows to divert attention away from itself."

"Don't worry Toshi, I'll keep my guard up."

"If it comes after your train, I'll be right along to back you up," Toushiro punched a few buttons on his phone. He knew Rangiku was a very capable fighter and a strong Shinigami, but that didn't stop him from feeling the need to protect her as his wife and the mother to their child.

Rangiku smiled softly "I know you will and if comes after your train instead, you can bet I'll be right along too."

Toushiro watched as a train emerged from a tunnel and rolled to a stop on the opposite platform, "That's your train Rangiku."

Rangiku looked over her shoulder, watching as the train quickly filled up with humans going about their business. She looked back and planted a quick kiss on his cheek before flashing away. She reappeared seconds later perched on the trains roof. A final call to board the train went out and a couple minutes later the train slowly moved off the platform. Before it entered the tunnel Rangiku waved to him and blew him a kiss.

He allowed himself a small smile before jumping onto the roof of the train that'd just pulled into the platform he were stood on. He checked his phone and watched as Rangiku's pink dot rounded a corner and began to speed away. He went to rub his ear and his fingers brushed against the earpiece. Remembering he could communicate with her he decided to test the clarity of the device.

"Rangiku.. Can you hear me?"

"Gosh Toshi! I wish you wouldn't sneak up on me like that!" There was silence for a few seconds before she added "I thought you were behind me just then."

"So I guess you can hear me just fine, I can hear you perfectly clear too."

"Well at least we know they work," Rangiku sighed, "Will I have to listen through a boring Captains meeting too?"

"Technically you shouldn't be listening in on a Captains meeting in the first place, but yes, most likely," Toushiro knew she would be pouting right now.

The train beneath Toushiro's feet lurched suddenly and slowly began rolling away from the platform. Once it entered the tunnel it soon picked up speed and flew down the tracks.

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><p>"Two hundred and fifty four... Two hundred and fifty five... Two hundred and fifty six!" Kotaro did a little bounce once he reached the top step, "I win granddad!"<p>

Ukitake tackled the last two steps and came to a stop next to Kotaro "Well done," he praised breathlessly. He did a quick scan around the courtyard and saw several Captains milling around already, "This way Kotaro."

"I don't see Gran-Gran," Kotaro's eyes were roaming around the courtyard taking in all the people present.

Ukitake guided Kotaro over to where the other Captains were congregated "She'll be here soon, we are a little early after all."

As Ukitake walked passed the other Captains bidding them a good morning, he received several bemused looks from them. He noticed Kotaro fidgeting uncomfortably so he stopped where he were and bent down to Kotaro's level, "Are you OK?"

Kotaro quickly glanced at the Captains standing a couple metres away before turning back to Ukitake suddenly feeling very shy, "Everybody is staring at me," he whispered quietly.

"No need to worry," Ukitake said turning back and smiling "They're just curious, that's all."

"Why?"

"Kotaro, the resemblance you have to your father is remarkable. You're a perfect replica, but in miniature. Its natural for others to be fascinated by you."

Ukitake saw Kotaro's eyebrows knit together in confusion, "But why?"

"Your father flew through the Shinigami Academy and graduated early despite his young age. He's a very smart and knowledgeable man, a genius. He's also the youngest Shinigami ever to attain the rank of Captain. Taking all that into consideration, he's nothing short of a prodigy."

"I still don't get it Granddad." Kotaro replied shooting a shy glance towards the small gathering of Captains still looking his way.

"I assume everybody is curious to see if the sequel matches up to the original," Ukitake chuckled when Kotaro pouted, "Anyway enough of this talk."

Ukitake began rummaging through the many pockets in his haori, "Now where did I put it."

"What you looking for Granddad?"

"Your crayon box," he replied slipping his hand into another pocket. His fingers brushed against a small paper bag which he'd completely forgotten about. He plucked it from his pocket and recognised them "Oh! I wondered where I put them," he opened the little bag and Kotaro's eyes lit up when he saw the colourful contents.

"Jelly Beans! My favourite."

Ukitake plucked one of the sweets from the bag and popped it in his mouth "Mmm very tasty, I see why you like them," he smiled as Kotaro popped two in his mouth together. He closed the bag and placed it in Kotaro's hand "Probably be best that you don't let Retsu see them."

"Don't let me see what?" Came the gentle voice from behind them, "I hope its not more candy."

Ukitake froze and Kotaro quickly stashed the bag behind his back while planting a wide eyed innocent look complete with dimples on his face, "Nothing Gran-Gran."

"Oh really?" Unohana replied lightly.

"Really," Kotaro replied trying desperately to keep the smirk off his face.

Ukitake discreetly reached his hand behind Kotaro's back and the small child passed the bag of sweets back to him.

"So you're not hiding anything behind your back then?" Unohana asked playing along.

Kotaro grinned from ear to ear and showed both his empty hands to her and wiggled his fingers "No Gran-Gran."

"Very well, I'll let you off then," she smiled before turning her gaze to Ukitake, "Juushiro."

"Ahh good morning Retsu!" He replied brightly while reaching a hand up to scratch the back of his neck "Lovely day, isn't it?" He asked sheepishly.

"Juushiro," She repeated smiling at him with her creepy smile.

He gulped "Yes Retsu?"

"Are you hiding anything behind your back?" She asked.

Ukitake squirmed uncomfortably, "Err.. what..? No! Of course not. What could I possibly want to hide behind my back anyway," he replied with his trademark smile.

Unohana held her hand out "Give me the candy Juushiro."

"What candy?" Ukitake asked standing up from his crouched position, he clutched the bag of contraband candy tightly in his hand, "I don't have any candy."

"Kotaro," Unohana returned her gaze to him "Was Granddad giving you some sweets again?"

"Of course I wasn't!" Ukitake said cutting in, gripping the bulging bag tighter.

This proved to be a monumental mistake. The jelly beans were barely being contained by the thin paper wrapping and his fingers pierced right through it. The paper ripped loudly and the jelly beans exploded out in every direction and rained down onto the stone floor behind him, sounding just like a hail storm.

Kotaro who'd been looking back and forth between Ukitake and Unohana glanced to his right and saw Nanao climbing the last few steps into the courtyard.

Seeing his escape route he yelled, "Auntie Nan-nan's here!" Before abandoning Ukitake and dashing off across the courtyard.

The two of them watched as Kotaro charged towards Nanao and bowled into her, nearly knocking her off her feet. She crouched down and Kotaro threw his arms around her neck in a suffocating hug.

"Juushiro-" Unohana began but was cut off.

"Retsu, I know what you're going to say. I know you don't like me giving Kotaro too many sweets," Ukitake sighed "I was only gong to give him a few anyway."

"Glad to hear it, but I wasn't going to say that," Unohana replied calmly, while watching Kotaro squeeze the life out of Nanao, "I was going to say, its odd not seeing Shunsui and Nanao arrive together."

Ukitake glanced over to Nanao and frowned, "That is odd."

The large double doors bearing the First Division kanji opened up, allowing the Captains entry into the corridor that would lead to the meeting hall.

"I'll see you in there Retsu," Ukitake flashed across the courtyard and landed neatly in front of Nanao, "Good morning Nanao, how are you today?"

Nanao disentangled herself from Kotaro and straightened up "I'm fine thank you Captain Ukitake, how are you?"

"Oh I cant complain," Ukitake pulled Kotaro's crayon box out of his robes and handed them to Kotaro, "Is Shunsui coming to the meeting?"

"He's already here Captain Ukitake," Nanao replied quietly "The Head-Captain summoned him earlier."

"Ah I see," Ukitake glanced over his shoulder and noticed that all the Captains were inside already, "I best get moving. Thank you for watching over him Nanao."

"Its no problem Captain Ukitake." A gust of wind blew around them just as Nanao glanced up at him, which whipped her fringe to one side. Ukitake caught a brief glimpse of the bruising on Nanao's forehead, that'd been cleverly disguised by her hair, before the wind died down and her hair fell flat again.

"Auntie Nan-nan!" Kotaro called out stretching his arms out, Nanao bent down and lifted him up. As her arm came up her sleeve slipped down a little way exposing her badly bruised wrist.

Ukitake's eyes went wide when he caught sight of it. He couldn't help but wonder what could have caused the bruises, his mind automatically putting two and two together. Shunsui's 'accident' and the blatant refusal to tell him anything and Nanao's carefully concealed injuries, he came to one conclusion. They must have had a bust up or something. A really bad bust up by the looks of it, yet he just couldn't imagine Shunsui harming Nanao in anyway. He doubted that Shunsui would open up and tell him anything, so maybe it would be worth a try talking to Nanao.

"Captain Ukitake?" He quickly schooled his features when Nanao returned her gaze to him.

"Yes dear?" His eyes flickered back to her wrist but her sleeve was covering it once again. "Is something wrong Nanao?"

He could tell that she wanted to ask or tell him something but instead she just shook her head and smiled "You're going to be late for the meeting."

"So I am," He reached a hand out and ruffled Kotaro's hair "I'll see you in a little while Kotaro."

"Bye bye Granddad," Kotaro waved with the hand clutching his crayon box.

"Be careful when you open your crayon box." With that said he turned on his heel and hurried to the meeting hall.

Ukitake just made it into the meeting hall before the large double doors slammed shut behind him. He glanced to the front of the room and noticed that the Head-Captain hadn't arrived yet, so he cast his eye over to Shunsui's place which was empty.

He jumped when a heavy hand landed on his shoulder and he spun around to find Shunsui behind him "Juu buddy," his friend greeted sombrely.

"I thought you were here already?" Had Nanao lied to him? Ukitake took in Shunsui's appearance. He had his usual straw hat on which was tilted more to the left today disguising much of his bruised face. Ukitake could see that Shunsui was sporting a sizeable black eye and half of his forehead, all of his left cheek and ear seemed swollen and purple. But more notable then anything else was the lack of Shunsui's pink haori. "Are you OK Shun?"

"Don't worry about me." Shunsui waved off Ukitake's concern, "Hows little Kotaro today?"

"He's fine, so full of beans today," Ukitake replied aware that Shunsui had changed the subject on purpose, still trying to avoid talking about yesterday "I just left him with Nanao a few minutes ago."

Shunsui froze, a look of horror adorning his face. He reached out and gripped Ukitake's shoulders tightly, "Nanao's looking after Kotaro?"

Ukitake shook off Shunsui's vice like grip on his shoulders "Yes Shun, I thought that would be obvious," he was baffled by Shunsui's sudden agitation and he were even more confused when his friend step around him to leave. "Shun?"

"SHUNSUI! JUUSHIRO! LINE UP!" Barked the Head-Captain which he followed up with a particularly loud thump of his staff on the floor.

Ukitake stepped across the room and lined up in his usual place next to Zaraki Kenpachi. Shunsui however was still standing by the door with his back to the room, one hand resting on the door ready to push it open and leave.

"Sometime today Shunsui!" the Head-Captain ordered impatiently, raising his pressure slightly which sent a wave of hot air across the large room. The air reached Shunsui and knocked his hat off his head.

Shunsui didn't move. It seemed to Ukitake that his friend was having some kind of internal dilemma. He made the decision then and there that after the meeting he would confront Shunsui about the real nature of his so called accident. He were pretty sure Shunsui's change in behaviour had everything to do with Nanao.

Shunsui's hand dropped away from the door and fell limply by his side. He turned slowly on the spot facing the rest of the room. He glanced briefly at the Head-Captain before walking gingerly over to his usual place next to Byakuya Kuchiki. Before Shunsui closed his eyes and bowed his head, Ukitake saw the pain and worry in his eyes clear as day.

"Right," The Head-Captains voice cut across the room, his heavy gaze fixed firmly on Shunsui taking in his downtrodden appearance, "Captain Kurotsuchi, if you will begin please."

Kurotsuchi stepped forward with some kind of device in his hands "I just need to establish communications first." The crazy scientist pressed a few buttons and the hissing and crackling of static filled the room. Kurotsuchi pressed a few more buttons and the static cleared up to be replaced by an odd rattling noise, "Hitsugaya, do you read me?"

"Loud and clear!" Came Toushiro's voice from the other side.

Ukitake smiled, it sounded like he were in the same room as them.

"Very good," Kurotsuchi went back to his device and pushed a few more buttons "Lieutenant do you read me also?"

"Hiya!" Came Rangiku's bubbly voice.

"Right! Now listen up," Kurotsuchi barked, "On the side of the devices is a small blue button. I want you both to press them."

Two identical columns of blue light flickered to life in the centre of the meeting room. Each column was about six feet tall and two feet wide. Contained inside them were two perfect holograms one of Toushiro and the other Rangiku.

"Is something suppose to happen Kurotsuchi?" Toushiro enquired.

"On this side, yes. That blue button creates a field around your bodies and transmits it back to us at the Soul Society as a hologram."

"You can see our every move?" Toushiro asked looking up from his phone.

"Of course, we all can," Kurotsuchi answered gleefully. "I suggest you act naturally and just ignore that fact though."

The Toushiro Hologram rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"I saw that Hitsugaya," Kurotsuchi screeched loudly.

The Head-Captain cleared his throat and everyone snapped to attention "This is an interesting technology Kurotsuchi, however we have much to discuss. Now let us begin." He banged his staff once more on the wooden floor, apart from the steady rattling of the trains from Toushiro's side the room fell silent with all attention focused on the Head-Captain.

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><p>My little scene with Ukitake and Kotaro kinda got away from me a bit and turned out much longer then planned. The next Chapter will mostly feature Toushiro and Rangiku with a little smidgen of Nanao and Kotaro =) See you next Chapter!<p> 


	10. Chapter 10

Hello to all my lovely readers. Firstly I would like to apologise for a much later update then usual. I'm terrible in summer, I just like to find the coolest spot in the house and curl up with a good book. I'm much more productive when its cooler weather - I HATE THE HEAT! Anyway I would like to thank Prince of Winter Dragons and Moonstar2015 for reviewing every chapter of this story so far. Your comments help to encourage me to carry on with the story ^_^. Also I would like to thank StrawberrySkies for leaving a wonderful review on STLO, I wanted to send a message to thank you unfortunatly you dont allow PMs, so hopefully you will see this =) Enough babbling from me, happy reading ^_^.

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 10<p>

_Childish squeals and laughter floated in the air and reached his ears through the open office window, along with several loud claps of thunder and the rush of heavy rainfall. The Seireitei had been in the midst of an heatwave all week and he was thoroughly enjoying the refreshing cool breeze the thunderstorm had brought with it._

"_Kotaro Hitsugaya! You get back in here right now young man."_

"_You got to catch me first Mummy!" Kotaro called back chuckling playfully as he dashed past the open office window._

_Toushiro smirked to himself as he signed off another report, he knew full well Rangiku hated thunderstorms. Yet his son seemed to love them and would always try to play outside during a storm._

"_Kotaro! Get back here you little snot."_

_Kotaro replied with more squeals and chuckles. _

_It sounded like Kotaro was enjoying himself by jumping in various puddles and making loud splashes while at the same time trying to dodge Rangiku._

_So for the next ten minutes he listened to the sounds of Rangiku chasing down Kotaro, as she tried to catch him and get him back inside, while he ploughed on through that days paperwork. _

_It wasn't until he heard a particularly loud sludgy splash did he pause and look up from his work. Everything had fallen quiet outside and seconds later Kotaro's scream pierced the silence._

"_Mummy! Help me!" He cried out._

"_Kotaro!" Rangiku gasped, running over to him._

_Toushiro jumped to his feet and was beside the window a second later. He looked out into the enclosed garden and saw Kotaro chest deep in a large muddy puddle, arms flailing around. He flashed out of the office abandoning his work and was beside Rangiku in seconds._

"_Daddy I'm stuck!" Kotaro cried when he caught sight of Toushiro._

"_Its OK little man, stay perfectly still and we'll have you right out," Toushiro replied taking a cautious step forward. He inched himself closer and reached a hand out and held Kotaro's upper arm firmly. He gave one quick tug and plucked Kotaro right out of the puddle and set him back down on his feet gently. It was lucky that Kotaro was so tiny and hardly weighed anything._

"_There you go little man," Toushiro ruffled Kotaro's soggy hair out of habit, "You should go back inside now and get cleaned off." He took in Kotaro's muddy appearance and smirked when he had an idea. He rested both his hands on Kotaro's shoulders and bent down so their eyes were on the same level, "Kotaro," he said in a low hushed voice._

_Kotaro looked at him through dripping wet hair that was plastered to his forehead "Yes Daddy?"_

_Toushiro leant closer and whispered in his ear, "I don't know about you, but I think Mummy could do with a hug now."_

_Kotaro looked around Toushiro and smiled innocently at Rangiku, "OK Daddy," Kotaro replied looking back at him, his face all lit up with mischief._

"_Kotaro sweetie are you all right?" Rangiku asked once Toushiro turned to face her._

_She took in his muddy appearance and couldn't help feeling a little guilty. Apart from his shoulders, face and a small patch of his white hair, Kotaro was completely covered with mud._

"_I'm sorry Mummy," he replied with puppy dog eyes, before breaking out into a grin and charging at Rangiku._

"_Wait!...No Kotaro!...STOP!...Ewww!" _

_Toushiro smirked as Kotaro launched himself at Rangiku and hugged the life out of her while smearing her with as much mud as possible, "I'm a mud monster Mummy! Roooaar!"_

Toushiro cursed loudly as the train beneath his feet lurched sharply to the left and wrenched him away from his thoughts. He stumbled slightly but soon regained his balance.

He pulled his phone out and sought out Rangiku's pink dot, which was situated on the other side of the subway, he guessed they were about fifteen minutes away from each other. So far they'd been riding the trains for almost an hour and they'd encountered nothing out of the ordinary.

The Captains meeting were still ongoing, however Kurotsuchi had deactivated the holograms after explaining how they worked which pleased Toushiro greatly, but had left the audio channel open so Toushiro could still listen in.

His phone suddenly bleeped loudly and erratically and when he checked the display he saw three red dots flashing away just around the next bend. As he stashed his phone away the strong stench of Hollow filled his nostrils.

He could tell they were only lesser Hollows and no where near as strong as the Hollow they were seeking, but still they needed to be dispatched. He gripped Hyourimaru's handle and slid it out of its sheath ready.

"Rangiku I have lesser Hollow activity over here."

"Understood Toush...Captain," Rangiku quickly corrected, momentarily forgetting about the room full of Captains listening in.

As the train sped around the bend, Toushiro's phone beeped frantically in his pocket alerting him to the incoming threat. Once the train cleared the bend and was back on the straight, two Hollows materialized before him while the third and largest Hollow appeared behind him.

The larger of the three Hollows roared at him in an attempt to intimidate him, "I thought I smelt a Shinigami, and a Captain at that. This is going to be such a fine meal."

Toushiro rolled his eyes, he always seemed to attract the mouthy Hollows.

"Although judging by your shrimpy size I doubt you'd even make a satisfying snack," the other two Hollows laughed loudly at that comment.

In answer to the Hollows taunts, Toushiro slashed behind him quick as lightening and with supreme accuracy, cleanly slicing through the Hollows mask. Before the other two Hollows even realized what had happened, the larger Hollow had already disintegrated into nothing.

"Oh he knows how to use that butter knife of his," one of the other Hollows commented.

Toushiro slashed out in front of him in one wide arc and caught both of the Hollows before him, they both shrieked loudly as they too disintegrated into nothing. He flicked his sword to the right then placed Hyourimaru back in its sheath.

"Captain.." He could barely hear Rangiku's voice over the static, "...llows."

"Rangiku, you're breaking up, please repeat."

"... encountered sever... level Holl..." Rangiku's voice was completely drowned out by the static.

"Rangiku?" Scowling he wrenched his phone out of his pocket, as he glanced at the display it suddenly lit up and screamed at him with one long, loud continuous beep.

Surrounding Rangiku's pink dot were five red dots and with a jolt to his stomach he noticed seven more waiting much further up the track from her position. He focused on the group of seven and noticed that six of the Hollows were surrounding the seventh almost like a protective shell.

"Damn it!" He cursed loudly, he was certain that the seventh Hollow was the big one they were hunting and it seemed like it had rounded up a bunch of other Hollows to help ambush the train. It was clear what they had to do. They needed to stop that train before it arrived at the larger group of Hollows. "Rangiku, if you can hear me I need you to stop that train at all costs."

He picked the fastest route that would take him to Rangiku, then quickly snapped his phone shut and took off after her. 'Hang in there Rangiku.'

* * *

><p>Rangiku frowned at the crackling static in her ear, she knew whatever Toushiro was trying to tell her had to be important but she could only pick out a few words.<p>

Unfortunately she didn't have the time to dwell on it too much as she focused on the small herd of Hollows before her.

Rangiku lifted Haineko up and blocked the set of claws that tried to swipe at her head. She shoved the Hollow back and ducked down as a second Hollow tried to take her head off too. She spun her left leg out and swept the second Hollows legs out from under it, which sent it sliding off the trains roof. She heard it shriek as it got dragged under the train and crushed by its heavy wheels.

One down. Four to go.

The first Hollow came lunging towards her again, so she stepped to the side and spun, bringing Haineko around in a wide arc and sliced cleanly through its mask.

Two down.

The other three seemed to be acting a bit more cautious compared to the first two and they were hanging back a little bit. Rangiku glanced between the three deciding which one to pick off first. She'd just decided to take out the Hollow on the left and was just about to take a step forward when the train lurched to the right, unbalanced she staggered to the left. The three Hollows took advantage of her little stumble and all of them charged at her at once.

She flash stepped and landed a few metres further up the train, facing the Hollows she raised her palm and yelled "Hado 31.. Sokatsui."

The whole tunnel glowed a ghostly blue colour as the kido spell burst fourth from her palm and shot towards the Hollows. On impact it exploded and took out two of the Hollows.

Four down.

Before the fifth Hollow could get its bearings and make a move, Rangiku leapt into the air and brought Haineko slicing down towards the Hollows mask cleaving it in two. With a final shriek the last Hollow disintegrated and the foul pressure lifted. The static in her ear cleared and she could hear the Head-Captain talking to the other Captains in the background once again.

Remembering that Toushiro had been trying to tell her something before the Hollows attacked, she tapped the small earpiece "Captain can you hear me now?"

"Yes Rangiku, what's the situation over there?" Toushiro's voice sounded like he was right next to her again.

"I've just dispatched a small group of lesser Hollows Captain," Rangiku replied pulling out her phone.

"Good work, but there seems to be a large group of higher level Hollows congregated together further up the line. I'm certain they are waiting to ambush the train when it arrives there," Toushiro's voice was as cool and calm as ever, "I'm still a few minutes away from your position, so in the mean time I need you to try and stop that train from arriving there."

Rangiku saw the seven red dots clearly on her screen. Judging by the speed of the train she guessed she had about five minutes to halt the train, "Understood Captain."

She flicked her phone shut and pouted, just exactly how do you go about stopping a speeding train.

Rangiku stood for a few moments on top of the train aware that every second she delayed, the train would be a second closer to becoming lunch for the band of Hollows.

She was just asking herself what Toushiro would do in this situation when the answer struck her. Surely these things would have been built with some sort of manual brake for use in an emergency. Where exactly she couldn't be sure, but she knew for certain it wouldn't be up here on the roof. It would have to be where passengers could access it easily enough.

Not wanting to waste any more time she flashed off the roof and reappeared inside the train landing at the front just outside the drivers cockpit. Quickly glancing around the packed train her eyes sought out any sign of a lever or button.

Seeing nothing she began to move towards the back of the train, walking past many businessmen dressed up in suits and ties, past the group of teenagers laughing amongst themselves and past several mothers jiggling their babies on their knees.

And then she saw it. A big red pull lever with a big warning sign stating "Do not touch! Only to be used in the event of an emergency!' situated on the wall behind the last set of seats, right next to the emergency exit.

Rangiku hurried over skirting past an elderly couple and past a lone sleeping man who stunk like a brewery. She reached her hand out and pulled the lever firmly. The whole trained lurched forwards and the squealing of the trains wheels confirmed that the brakes had kicked in and gradually the train ground to a halt.

There was a moment of collective silence before whispers broke out amongst the passengers, which quickly grew louder as people began to speculate what had happened. The drivers cockpit door slid open and a harassed looking man she took to be the driver came out shouting "Who the hell pulled that emergency brake! Damn kids!"

Her work done here Rangiku grinned and flashed back onto the roof.

"Good work Rangiku."

"Captain!" Rangiku spun on the spot to see Toushiro standing behind her with his arms folded into his sleeves and with a slight frown on his face. She smiled at him before asking, "So what's the plan now? I assume you have one already?"

Toushiro nodded at her before pulling his hands out of his sleeves. In his right hand he was clutching some sort of circuit board with a few wires spiralling off in different directions.

Rangiku raised her eyebrows at him, "What's that?"

"I'm afraid due to a... technical fault, the train has broken down and unfortunately wont be able to resume its journey for a little while," Toushiro replied with his perfect poker face. Rangiku was certain she saw the corner of his lips tug up slightly in a smile. Who would have thought he would enjoy being such a vandal.

Rangiku smirked back at him, "That is very unfortunate indeed."

Toushiro turned his back on her and began walking towards the back of the train. He stopped just short of the edge and raised his palm muttering some sort of complex kido spell. Rangiku felt the spell peak and recognized it as a high level kido barrier. Toushiro flicked his wrist and a barrier sprung up two metres away from the train stretching from wall to wall and floor to ceiling.

"Are you sealing the train in?" Rangiku enquired.

"Yes. I don't want to risk any Hollows attacking the train while we're not around," he stepped around her and began walking towards the front of the train but paused when he heard a grinding noise coming from below. They poked their faces over the side of the train and saw that the humans had slid open the emergency door and were peering out onto the track. "Or letting any of the humans wonder around down here."

Rangiku nodded her agreement "Its for their own good."

"Come Rangiku, I want as much distance as possible between us and this train before we engage that pack of Hollows. You can be certain once they sense the train has stopped they will make a beeline for it."

Toushiro made sure the train was several metres behind them before he turned on the spot and created another kido barrier, essentially blocking off this portion of the tunnel. He were confident it would be strong enough to keep the humans in and the Hollows out.

"Right lets go, according to my readings the pack is about one mile ahead," with that said Toushiro flashed stepped away, Rangiku following him one step behind.

* * *

><p>The Captains meeting as Ukitake had expected, had started out with each Captain giving the Head-Captain a brief report on the running of their squads. Everybody else had given their reports, except Toushiro who was occupied with his investigation. So now they were all listening politely as Soifon delivered the final report.<p>

During the meeting Ukitake had been keeping a close eye on Shunsui, who held himself so still he could have easily passed himself off as a statue. Every now and then Ukitake noticed his eyes wondering to the doors, as if he was about to bolt any second. When Shunsui had been delivering his report, he'd done so in a dull monotonous voice which lacked his usual flair and a couple of times he'd stumbled over his words.

Ukitake was worried about him, he was acting so out of character lately. He was also worried about Nanao and the bruising he'd seen on her. What worried him the most though was Shunsui's reaction when he'd told him Nanao would be watching over Kotaro. The look of horror on his face had been alarming.

The Head-Captain cleared his throat and Ukitake returned his attention back to the meeting.

"Now onto the final topic for today," Yamamoto paused and glanced around the room ensuring everyone were paying attention, "I believe it is time we addressed the issue of squads Three, Five and Nine. Ideally I would like to fill the spaces with capable and trustworthy people and I request that each of you put forth any recommendations you may have. However I must note that thus far we have coped well despite the gaps in our rank and so I may consider disbanding those divisions altogether and having just the ten squads. That is only if we are unable to find the right candidates."

"What would you do with those divisions members and Lieutenants if the squads were disbanded?" Komamura asked.

"Naturally we would share the squad members out amongst the other squads, as for the Lieutenants," The Head-Captain opened his eyes slightly, his heavy gaze falling upon Ukitake, "Rest assured they will be offered a suitable placement, which brings me to another issue. Juushiro you have been without a Lieutenant for many many years now, I believe it is high time that position is filled."

"Head Captain-" Ukitake began to protest but was promptly cut off by Yamamoto.

They'd had this conversation many times before privately. It had taken him quite awhile to persuade his former Lieutenant, Kaien Shiba to take the position. He'd been a Captain for hundreds of years and one thing he'd learnt in that time was – it took time to find the right person for the job. It didn't help that he was incredibly picky when it came to his second in command, but he believed the right bond between Captain and Lieutenant was paramount to a happy, successful and harmonious division.

"Juushiro I'm giving you one month to find a Lieutenant, however if you haven't picked one in that time I shall assign a suitable person to the position."

"I believe I've mentioned an ideal candidate several times already, Head-Captain." Ukitake replied stubbornly.

"Hmm," Yamamoto switched his gaze from Ukitake to, "Captain Kuchiki."

"No," Captain Kuchiki replied in a frosty tone, "Absolutely not."

"Byakuya be reasonable," Ukitake realised he'd unintentionally raised his voice "She has proven herself several times that she is a strong and capable Shinigami. Is it fair to her that you keep holding her back from reaching her full potential?"

"I don't believe that is any of your business Ukitake," Kuchiki replied with his usual air of arrogance.

"She is in my squad and I'm her Captain, of course its my business."

"Enough!" Yamamoto slammed his wooden staff onto the hard floor, "Captain Kuchiki I'm aware of your opinion, however I'm over ruling you on this matter. I have to agree with Juushiro, its about time we allowed Miss Kuchiki the chance to reach her potential," the Head-Captain switched his gaze back to Ukitake, "Juushiro I expect the appropriate paperwork to be on my desk by the end of this week, provided Miss Kuchiki accepts the position."

"Yes Head-Captain," Ukitake replied feeling happy at the sudden change. He was pretty certain Rukia would accept his offer.

"Good, I believe that is all for today," Yamamoto slammed his staff on the floor one final time "Dismissed."

Ukitake turned to Shunsui but as soon as Yamamoto had dismissed them, Shunsui was already hurrying for the door.

"Shunsui," the Head-Captain called across the room, "I want a word-"

Before the Head-Captain could finish his sentence Shunsui had flashed away already.

"Shunsui!" Ukitake called after him, completely baffled by Shunsui's sudden departure.

"Juushiro, Retsu, I wish to speak with you both."

Ukitake turned to face Yamamoto and walked across the room to stand before him, Unohana joining him by his side. The Head-Captain waited while the rest of the room emptied before clearing his throat, "What's the deal with Shunsui, and how did he get those injuries?"

Ukitake deciding to keep quiet for now about his speculations on the matter, and just stick with the facts he knew, replied "We don't fully know what happened to him yet Head-Captain."

"Hmm," The Head-Captain peeked one eye open and peered at the two of them, "Why don't you tell me what you do know Juushiro."

"Its not much. Shunsui sent me a message requesting help and when I arrived at his quarters I found him in a pretty bad way," Ukitake paused and looked at the Head-Captain, who just gave a tiny nod for him to continue, "I sent for Retsu to come and check him over, his injuries seemed pretty severe. Naturally we asked him how he managed to get in such a state."

"And his answer was?" Yamamoto asked in his usual gravelly voice.

Ukitake shared a look with Unohana who prompted him to go on "He slipped."

The Head-Captain opened both of his eyes fully and looked between them before blowing air out his mouth in exasperation "That idiot. Couldn't he even be bothered to come up with a semi plausible excuse."

Ukitake sighed "Its all we could get out of him."

Beep Beep.

Yamamoto turned his gaze onto Unohana "Retsu, you tended to his injuries. Do the injuries match up to his excuse?"

"No Head-Captain," Unohana answered truthfully.

Beep Beep.

The Head-Captain closed his eyes obviously thinking over the information, "Very well. Juushiro, Retsu I shall leave the situation in your capable hands," Yamamoto sighed wearily, "Also while you're at it, I want you to find out why the Eighth hasn't handed in their quarterly budget form yet, it was due on my desk five days ago."

Beep Beep.

Ukitake's eyes narrowed, that didn't sound like Nanao at all. She would never be late with paperwork, especially with something as important as the monthly budget, "I'll ask Nanao about that. I'm sure its probably just been misplaced."

Beep Beep.

Yamamoto grunted at Ukitake's reply, "In fact while you're at it, find out why none of the Eighths paperwork has arrived here for the last four days."

Beep Beep.

"What! None at all?" Ukitake cut in sharply.

Beep Beep.

Yamamoto slammed his fist down hard on his arm rest "And what is that beeping noise?"

Beep Beep.

"Sounds like a tracker on a soul phone," Ukitake supplied, "Hey Toushiro can you still hear us?"

"Yes, sorry," Toushiro's voice crackled slightly over the open channel, "It seems Kurotsuchi may have forgotten to close the audio."

"Captain Hitsugaya," Yamamoto began, "How goes the investigation, can you give me an update on the situation?"

* * *

><p>As Toushiro walked along the train tracks, heading in the direction of the pack of Hollows he quickly filled the Head-Captain in on their progress. He'd just finished telling him about sealing in the train full of humans. The whole time he'd kept a close eye on the tracker, they were barely thirty metres away from the pack now. But oddly enough neither Rangiku or himself had made a sighting yet.<p>

"And now we are closing in on the group of Hollows, we should be engaging them within the next few minutes."

"Hmm, just as I expected, very quick work on your part," The Head-Captain was silent for a few moments, "Report back to me when you have dispatched the group of Hollows and we'll arrange an earlier return back to Soul Society for you."

Toushiro's phone began to beep erratically. According to the tracker they were at the location of the seven Hollows. Rangiku's phone was also going crazy, yet glancing around the tunnel the only occupants were themselves.

"Rangiku do you have a visual?" He called over his shoulder to Rangiku who'd been trailing behind him a few metres.

"Negative, but according to these readings they should be right on top of us."

Toushiro gripped Hyourimaru's handle and pulled it from its sheathe. He heard a scrape of metal and knew that Rangiku had done the same with Haineko. He backed up a few paces and bumped into Rangiku's back. As always she had his back, just like he would always have hers.

Both of their phones were beeping furiously away until the beeps dissolved into one long continuous alarm.

Where are they? He thought gritting his teeth and slipping into his battle stance. He dropped his phone choosing to discard it in favour of an extra hand gripping the hilt of his sword.

The floor beneath his feet began to rumble, like an earthquake had just decided to strike. The walls were shaking and dust was floating down from the ceiling above. Both his and Rangiku's phones suddenly fell quiet, he was just about to turn to her when the walls either side of them and the ceiling above suddenly exploded, pelting them with large chunks of concrete and bricks.

Choking on the dust cloud, he peered through the gloom to see six large menacing Hollows surrounding them on all sides, glaring back at them.

"Reign over the frosted heavens, Hyourimaru!"

"Growl, Haineko!"

There was a tiny moment of absolute silence, before one of the Hollows shrieked. The other five followed up with equally deafening roars.

Then all at once, they jumped Toushiro and Rangiku.


	11. Chapter 11

Hello to all my readers! I'm back with the next chapter two days earlier then planned. Just a quick note to say that after recieving a couple of reviews on Someone To Lean on pointing out my use of 'was' and 'were', well I've been focusing on the use of it in this chapter and hopefully I now have it right. Let me know what you think. I always appriciate constructive criticism and as always all comments, feedback and reviews are appriciated.

* * *

><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 11<p>

Walking briskly through the streets of the Seireitei, Nanao tried desperately to refocus her attention elsewhere. She was aware that the worry she'd felt yesterday when she'd woken up, was quickly escalating into full blown anxiety. She thought that Shunsui would have been able to explain the gap in her memory and put her worries to ease.

However his explanation that she'd been over working herself and the lack of sleep must be catching up with her, had had the opposite effect. In the past when she'd worked herself into exhaustion, never had she known herself to completely forget what she'd done during the day. It just didn't happen.

True she'd been feeling very tired lately, and yes one could argue that she was a little on the exhausted side. But that explanation completely over looked one thing. Her injuries.

Her fingers automatically went up to her forehead brushing over the sizeable lump. It had been disorientating to wake up with no memory. But to also wake up with injuries and not know how she'd received them had been damn near alarming.

What had bothered her the most and had truly made her feel uneasy and anxious was Shunsui's reaction. Or to be more precise, his lack of a reaction.

Shunsui, always one with a flair for the dramatic, had embarrassed her no end of times in the past by tossing her over his shoulder and rushing her off to the Fourth for something as silly as a paper cut.

So for her to turn up with injuries like that, and not even see him bat an eyelid, it made her certain that he knew exactly how she'd received them. Not to mention that he too, had a few injuries.

She'd known and worked with him for decades, she knew full well when he was hiding something or keeping certain information withheld from her. She knew full well this was one of those times.

Last night when she'd gone to his place, after they'd had a nap together they'd decided to have dinner. In Nanao's opinion it had been one of the most uncomfortable encounters between them to date.

She'd already been feeling on edge due to the lack of a decent explanation from Shunsui. So when she noticed that Shunsui had been equally on edge too, well that just added even more to the feeling.

They'd hardly spoken during the meal, and it seemed like Shunsui had been trying to avoid looking her in the eye. Nanao had stolen several glances at him when she thought he hadn't been looking and the few times she'd caught his eye, well she got the strange feeling that he were looking at her as if she were about to do something horrible to him.

Not being able to stand the atmosphere much longer, she'd quickly excused herself to clean up the dinner pots and had been relieved when Shunsui had decided to go back to bed.

She'd waited until Shunsui had gone back to sleep, the deep rumbling snores the only confirmation she'd needed, and had sneaked out of his quarters and bolted back to her own. Choosing to spend the rest of the night in her own rooms.

To avoid him further, instead of going to his quarters to wake him for the Captains meeting and accompanying him on the walk to the first, she'd decided to go on ahead without him.

She felt like she desperately needed to talk to someone about this. Usually she wouldn't keep anything from Shunsui, but when it concerned Shunsui, she would normally seek out Rangiku. Unfortunately that just wasn't possible right now.

Nanao wondered if she should talk to Captain Ukitake about it. The whole way to the First Division she'd been considering it, hoping it wouldn't be putting him in the middle, he was Shunsui's best friend after all.

She knew Ukitake had noticed her bruises, the brief shock on his face had been quickly replaced by concern. Nanao had decided right then to ask him, however it was hardly the right time or place to discuss it so she'd quickly changed the subject. She would catch him later, when he came to pick Kotaro up.

"Auntie Nan-nan," Kotaro called several metres from behind her.

She paused in her tracks to look back at Kotaro, who seemed to be dragging his feet tiredly. She'd been so caught up in her thoughts she'd been walking at her usual brisk pace without thinking.

"I'm tired," he whined softly, looking rather red in the face.

"Oh Kotaro, I'm so sorry," she crouched down and Kotaro hurried the rest of the way over to her, "I should have realised I was walking quite fast."

"Its OK Nan-nan," Kotaro replied sincerely "Daddy does it all the time when his head is full of stuff."

Nanao quirked an eyebrow "What kind of stuff?"

"I don't know... just stuff," Kotaro looked up at her with a little frown, "Is your head full of stuff?"

"I suppose you could say that," Nanao smiled and held her hand out "We haven't got far to go now," Kotaro held onto her hand and she began to walk again, this time at a much slower pace.

As they walked along, a lone raindrop splashed onto the lens of her glasses, quickly followed by another. She looked up at the dark grey clouds above and sighed. Seconds later they were being pelted by heavy rain. Nanao scooped Kotaro up into her arms and half dashed, half shunpoed them back to her office.

Nanao placed Kotaro back down on his feet and slid the office door open. Kotaro bounded inside but skidded to a halt and gasped "Auntie Nan-nan! What happened?" Kotaro was not used to seeing Nanao's usually immaculate office looking so messy.

Nanao stepped inside casting her eyes over the room, it was indeed a complete mess.

She frowned while recalling the last time she'd been in the office. It didn't help that she still couldn't recall much of yesterday, other then waking up in her quarters and then going to Shunsui's place. She could remember being in the office before they went to visit Ukitake the day before. She shook her head, either way she hadn't left it in this state.

Her eyes skimmed over Shunsui's discarded pink haori, the collection of empty sake bottles and the piles of paperwork stashed behind the couch, her frown quickly turned into a scowl. She walked over to her desk eyeing the large dried ink stain and the overturned inkwell.

She opened one of the drawers to her desk and pulled out several plain sheets of paper, then turned to Kotaro who'd been trailing behind her like a little lost puppy.

She knelt down to his level to talk to him, "Kotaro do you still want to do some drawings for me?"

Kotaro nodded clutching his crayon box to his chest.

"OK I have some paper here for you," Nanao handed the sheets to him and straightened back up, before stepping over to the low table and picking off the empty sake bottles, "I'll just clear off the table for you."

She looked over her shoulder and saw Kotaro kneeling in front of her desk already trying to prise his crayon box open. His determination at trying to open the box was plastered all over his adorable face. He finally got the box open and a large amount of what looked to be jelly beans, spilled out and scattered across the floor.

Kotaro's face lit up "Sweeties!" He reached his hands out and began gathering the scattered jelly beans into a small pile next to him on the floor.

Nanao grabbed a small bowl off the low table and glided over to him. She knelt down on the floor next to him and started scooping the sweets up into the bowl.

Kotaro stopped what he was doing and peered at her, "Auntie Nan-nan."

Nanao saw the unsure look on his face and rested her palm against his cheek "What's wrong Kotaro?"

"You wont tell Gran-Gran about the sweeties will you?" Kotaro gave her the cute puppy dog eyes and stuck his bottom lip out pouting.

Nanao smiled "Of course not, it will be our little secret."

Kotaro grinned back at her, "And Granddad's secret too!" He turned back to his crayon box and pulled out a green crayon. Nanao watched him for a few minutes as he began to create some sort of green blob on the paper. Deciding to get on with tidying up the office she decided to leave him to his drawing seeing as he was so absorbed in it.

"I'll just be doing a bit of tidying up Kotaro," she rose to her feet and dusted off her robes.

She was about to step away when she felt Kotaro grip the hem of her sleeve, "Auntie Nan-nan this is for you," resting on his palm was one lone purple jelly bean, "They taste nice," he said his face looking serious.

Nanao bent down and planted a kiss on his forehead "You're so sweet," she took the offered sweet and popped it into her mouth. She let the flavour roll over her taste buds and she soon identified the flavour... blackcurrant. "Mmm."

Kotaro grinned obviously pleased with her assessment and turned back to his picture.

Nanao glanced around the office once more, forming a plan of action in her mind. She walked over to the couch and began picking up the sake bottles and dumping them in the bin.

Ten minutes later Nanao stood back and admired the much tidier looking office. She'd been furious to find that, out of the two large stacks of paperwork stashed behind the couch, one of them had been due to be delivered to the First Division four days ago.

How she'd managed to miss that she wasn't sure, but had promptly summoned one of her division members to run them over to the first. The second pile of paperwork had been due for completion yesterday and added to the fresh piles that had come in today and the day before. Needless to say she was behind. Very behind.

After checking on Kotaro and making herself a pot of tea, she sat herself down at her desk and began what she knew would be a very long day and quite possibly a long night too.

* * *

><p>Nanao signed her name at the bottom of the report she'd just been reading through and placed it on the pile with the other completed paperwork.<p>

She placed her brush down and stretched before getting to her feet and peeking over the top of her desk.

On the floor sat Kotaro with a variety of crayons scattered around him, happily doodling away on the few scraps of paper she'd supplied him with.

Kotaro sensing her gaze on him, lifted his head to look up at her. He stared at her for several seconds with his adorable poker face he'd inherited from Toushiro, before a huge grin spread across his face. Nanao couldn't help but smile back, Kotaro looked away and went back to his drawing.

Nanao sat back down and pulled the next report off the 'To Do' pile and got back to work.

The office had a peaceful atmosphere to it, with the rain falling against the window in a steady pitter-patter and the sounds of Kotaro doodling away, it gave her a deep feeling of contentment and made her heavy workload feel less heavy.

She paused mid brush stroke when Kotaro's doodling noises stopped, she heard him shuffling around and wondered what he was doing. When all fell quiet again she carried on completing the form she was filling out.

She'd only filled out two more lines when out of the corner of her eye, she saw a white tuft of hair sticking up at the edge of her desk. She looked over and watched as Kotaro placed both hands on the edge and two teal eyes came into view peeking at her.

"Kotaro, are you all right?" she asked putting her brush down.

Kotaro just nodded his head slowly before sinking back down to the floor.

Nanao was about to go back to her form filling when she heard the rustling of paper and then Kotaro peeked over the edge of her desk again. He grinned at her before placing four sheets of paper on her desk.

"Auntie Nan-nan I drew some pictures."

"Why don't you come round here so you can show me them." She figured a short break would do her good.

Kotaro's face disappeared from her view again and she watched his tuft of hair move around the desk as he padded around to where she sat. She lifted him up onto her lap and pulled his pictures closer so they could both see them.

Nanao looked at the first picture and couldn't help but smile. She was fairly certain she knew who the blobs were, but decided to ask Kotaro anyway.

"Kotaro is this little green blob you?"

Kotaro grinned and nodded enthusiastically "Its me!"

"And is that white blob-"

"Its Daddy!"

"So the black blob with the pink swirl must be.." Nanao trailed off and smiled at Kotaro.

"Mummy!" Kotaro cheered throwing his hands in the air.

Nanao slid the picture of Rangiku and Toushiro to one side and pulled the next picture closer, she recognized Kotaro's green blob again but had a little trouble deciphering the two black and white blobs that seemed to be standing quite close together, almost joined together "Kotaro what's this picture here?" She asked tapping it with her finger.

"Its Gran-Gran and Granddad silly," Kotaro replied bobbing his head up and down.

Nanao tilted her head to one side and squinted, sure enough one of the blobs had black hair trailing down the front and the other had white. Looking closer it looked like the white haired blob was... "Kotaro what are those two black things?"

"Its Granddad's arms Nan-nan."

"Oh," she squinted a bit more, it almost looked like they were.. "Are they hugging?"

"Granddad hugs Gran-Gran all the time. Gran-Gran likes being hugged by Granddad a lot," Kotaro grinned at her showing off his dimples, "They kiss a lot too but I look away because its yucky."

Nanao laughed out loudly at that comment and gave Kotaro a little squeeze, before placing the picture on top of the first and then pulling the next picture closer.

The third picture Nanao couldn't recognize at all. Kotaro had coloured the edges of the paper with yellow and brown marks, like a sort of boarder. In the centre of the page was a small green blob which she took to be Kotaro again. There was also a larger green blob and on top of this was a brown stick with red radiating out from it. Next to the large green blob was a large orange thing which seemed to have a long tail.

Nanao stared at the picture with a frown on her face, a little confused. She tilted her head to the side and squinted, but failed to make heads or tails of it.

"Kotaro can you tell me what this picture is suppose to be?"

Kotaro looked at the picture for a few seconds before replying "Its a dream I had Nan-nan."

Kotaro pointed at the yellow and brown marks ringing the edges of the page, "These are the leaves," then he pointed at the small green blob "This is me," his little finger then hovered over the larger green blob "That's the tall hill with the huge red tree on top."

"Oh I see," Nanao replied taking in the colours, it reminded her of an Autumnal scene. She focused on the large orange thing wondering what it could be. She was just about to ask Kotaro what it were suppose to be, when she realised with a jolt what this picture could signify and quickly stifled her curiosity, "And you said you dreamt this?"

"All the time," Kotaro nodded and pointed at the large orange blob, "She's my friend."

Nanao was speechless. Had Kotaro found his way to his inner world already, or could it just be a coincidence? Considering how powerful Rangiku and Toushiro were, it stood to reason that Kotaro would have Shinigami powers too. Toushiro had been so young too when he'd joined the Academy, but even so, he hadn't been as young as Kotaro. Even when she'd joined the academy herself, she hadn't been as young as Kotaro either. He was just a toddler, an infant.

"Auntie Nan-nan?" Kotaro tapped her on her arm and wrenched her away from her line of thought, "Do you want to see the last picture?"

Nanao watched as Kotaro pushed the last picture closer to her.

She smiled sadly when she recognized the pink blob as Shunsui and the black blob she knew to be herself, which Kotaro had drawn holding hands and smiling happily together, with Kotaro's little green blob sat on Shunsui's shoulders.

"Its me, you and Shunsui," Nanao replied feeling an odd sense of loss come over her.

She felt a sinking feeling in her stomach when she compared how happy they seemed in the picture, to how they were with each other last night at dinner. She couldn't help but feel like she was somehow responsible for it all. Was it because she'd snapped at Shunsui that night when she went to fetch him home from the bar?

No, she told herself. They'd spoken about it in the office the next day and everything had been fine between them. Whatever caused the sudden change in their relationship must have happened during the time they left Ukitake's place and when she woke up in her quarters. She was certain about it.

She brought her hand up to her forehead, running her fingers over the lump. As her sleeve fell back she caught a glimpse of the bruising ringing her wrist.

"_Nanao!"_

_She winced as pain erupted in her left wrist. Her shoulder jarred painfully as the vice like grip prevented her from going any further. She tried to yank her arm free, however the large hand just gripped her wrist tighter, which burned painfully down into her fingers._

"_Let go of me!" She screamed at her captor, who increased the pressure on her wrist, her hand was going numb and the nails digging into her skin felt like needles._

"_You know I cant do that."_

_She turned to face him. Shunsui was down on his knees, refusing to let her go._

Nanao went rigid in her seat. She felt a tight knot of panic coiling away in her stomach, which rapidly rose to her throat, making it feel dry and tight. She suddenly realised she couldn't breathe, and began gasping for breath. She felt hot and smothered, yet her hands had gone ice cold. She could feel her whole body trembling and was certain the whole room was going to collapse in around her.

"Auntie Nan-nan!" Kotaro shuffled around on her lap so he was facing her. He reached one small hand out and rested it directly over her heart, which felt like it was going to explode out of her chest any second.

Nanao gasped when she felt a cool soothing sensation wash over her, which drove away the panic. She took slow deep breaths and soon her heart rate began to slow to a normal pace. What was that just now? As quickly as it came, it had gone again.

"Auntie Nan-nan, don't you like my picture?"

She couldn't remember closing her eyes, but when she slowly peeked them open again, Kotaro was staring at her with a frown on his face. She realised too late that her eyes were burning and the unshed tears were desperately trying to make an escape.

Nanao pulled Kotaro into a hug, he rested his head on her shoulder and she buried her face in his hair, "The pictures great Kotaro, can I keep it?"

Kotaro pulled away from her and nodded before frowning at her once again, "You look sad Nan-nan, do you miss Uncle Shun-shun?"

Nanao made a noise that was halfway between a laugh and a sob "Something like that Kotaro."

Kotaro stared at her for a few seconds before nodding and saying "I feel sad too."

"Why do you feel sad Kotaro," Nanao rested her palm against his cheek feeling concerned. Had she just alarmed him during her brief moment of panic?

"I miss Mummy and Daddy," Kotaro stared at her with sad puppy dog eyes, his bottom lip wobbling slightly.

Nanao pulled him into another hug and rubbed his back soothingly, "I know you miss them Kotaro, we all do. But don't you worry OK. They'll be back before you know it."

They sat like that in the quiet office for several minutes hugging each other, until hurried footsteps approaching the office door broke through that silence. Nanao scowled wondering who the heavy footed person was. She'd just recognized the persons familiar reiatsu, when the office door slid open with a loud bang. The noise startled both of them and they practically jumped out of their seats.

Looking over to the door Nanao had to do a double take. Framed by the doorway stood Shunsui, looking very different with just his Captains haori and no hat resting on his head. She looked at his bruised face and couldn't decide whether his expression was concerned or angry.

Their eyes met and for a few agonizing minutes they just stared at each other, an awkward silence falling upon the office.

Nanao was just beginning to feel worried when Kotaro's face lit up and he squealed loudly "Uncle Shun-shun!"

Nanao saw Shunsui's eyes soften, before their usual warmth returned to them. His eyes crinkled at the edges as a huge goofy smile crept onto his face. He threw his arms wide dramatically before declaring loudly "Kotaro! My little buddy."

Kotaro bounced excitedly in Nanao's lap, before leaping off and bounding across the room towards Shunsui. As Kotaro moved away from her, Nanao noticed that the soothing calm she'd felt also went with him. Nanao began to feel agitated again, she gripped the edge of her desk tightly as she tried to take a few deep calming breaths.

Over by the door Kotaro was laughing his head off as Shunsui tossed him into the air and caught him again, before swirling him around in the air above his head.

"Again Shun-shun, again!" Kotaro cried out breathless from his giggles.

Shunsui obliged once more before setting Kotaro back down on his feet. He watched as Kotaro padded back across the room towards Nanao's desk and leapt back onto her lap. He flung his little arms around Nanao's neck hugging the life out of her again.

Shunsui noticed with a pang of guilt, how calm and happy Nanao seemed to be with Kotaro. He felt embarrassed about how he'd reacted when Ukitake had told him Nanao would be looking after Kotaro and ashamed that he'd jumped to conclusions, assuming she would do something awful. Just because she'd lost it a few times with him, didn't mean she'd be like it with everyone else. Which raised another question. Was it only him that she reacted badly towards?

He wasn't a fool. He'd noticed the brief flicker of agitation in her reiatsu when Kotaro had stepped away from her. As soon as Kotaro had neared her again, it had settled down. Shunsui wondered if Nanao's agitation was due to his own close proximity.

"I'll see you two later," Shunsui swept across the room and plucked his pink haori off the couch, before making a hasty retreat out the door. He wanted to be alone while he pondered the situation between himself and Nanao.

As Shunsui disappeared out the door in a flurry of pink, Nanao let out a long sigh of relief. Kotaro skipped off her lap and went back to doing some more drawings. She began to feel much calmer now that Shunsui had left. She glanced down once again at the bruises ringing her wrist. Her eyes widened and she sat up straight, wrenching the hem of her sleeve further up her arm. The dark bruising on her wrist had faded completely. Her fingers sought out the lump on her forehead which had also disappeared. She pulled a drawer open and rummaged inside for her hand held mirror. Holding it up and checking her reflection, she was shocked to find that her forehead was clear of bruising too.

"What the... How?"

"How what Nan-nan?" Kotaro was once again peeking over her desk.

"Err.. Nothing Kotaro," she rose to her feet "I'm going to make some tea, would you like a drink?"

Kotaro nodded before sinking back down to his drawings. Nanao grabbed the empty pot off her table and hurried into the kitchen, while wondering if she was going crazy.

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><p>The next chapter will be picking up on Toushiro and Rangiku, just to avoid any confusion this chapter and the next kind of happen simultaneously. ^_^<p> 


	12. Chapter 12

Hello Readers! ^_^ I dont have much to say this time, but I would like to say Thank you to Retsu-sari-chan, Strawberryskies, Prince of Winter Dragons, Moonstar2015 and Lil'ShiroLover85 for your reviews.

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 12<p>

Toushiro quickly wiped the blood out of his eye and then hurled himself back to his feet. Through his blurry vision he saw the last Hollow a little way ahead, separating him from Rangiku.

When the six Hollows had ambushed the two of them, they'd managed to get separated and he and Rangiku were forced to fight three on one. Luckily Toushiro had already managed to dispatch the three Hollows that'd come after him. Rangiku had dispatched two of the Hollows that had gone after her, however the last one was causing her some trouble and from where he was standing, he could why.

The Hollow had four tentacle like arms which could stretch several metres ahead of it, making it perfect for fighting at a distance. Rangiku could use Haineko effectively for fighting at a distance, however every time her blade disintegrated into ash, the Hollow would attack her with all four of its tentacles while she had no blade to defend with.

Rangiku flicked her wrist and the ash from her blade kicked up into a dusty, swirling tornado. The Hollow extended two of its tentacles towards Rangiku, trying for another attack. Quick as lightening Rangiku flicked her wrist and redirected the ashy tornado into a sort of barrier between herself and the Hollow.

The outraged Hollow roared deafeningly and began drumming on the wall of ash, trying to break through to Rangiku.

"Rangiku!" Toushiro yelled at the top of his lungs. He charged forwards ready to defend Rangiku, however the Hollow whipped a tentacle around to strike him in his side. The blow connected and Toushiro was knocked off his feet and slammed into the tunnel wall.

"Toshi!" Rangiku cried out in alarm.

Toushiro scrabbled back to his feet growling. Ignoring the burning pain in his shoulder he ran the back of his hand across his mouth, wiping the blood away from his split lip. He created an icy dragon, which hovered above him, rotating in a slow tight spiral.

He jabbed the point of his sword towards the Hollow and his icy dragon charged towards it. The dragon connected and froze two of the Hollows tentacles to the ground, essentially anchoring it.

"Now Rangiku," Toushiro shouted, slipping into a semi crouching stance, ready to spring.

Knowing exactly what Toushiro had meant, Rangiku flicked her wrist and the wall of ash exploded out towards the Hollow, showering it with its sharp ashy particles. With a second flick of her wrist, the ash clinging to the other two tentacles solidified and cut through them, the severed tentacles showering the ground with crimson blood. The Hollow let out an ear piercing shriek which echoed back off the walls.

Toushiro sprang from his semi crouched position and launched himself at the Hollow, leaping high he brought his sword slicing down, splitting the Hollows mask in two.

As soon as he'd landed again, he flashed over to Rangiku who was doubled over on her knees clutching a hand to her side. They were both a little worst for wear.

"Rangiku are you OK?"

"Where's the last one?" She asked, reaching her other hand out and gripping Toushiro's arm tightly. He could tell she was in a lot of pain. "I thought you said there were seven Hollows Toshi?"

"Dammit!" Toushiro scowled, his eyes were roaming around the destroyed tunnel. His eyes landed on his discarded soul phone and he removed his arm from Rangiku's grip and dashed over to retrieve it. He returned to her side and began tapping the blank screen. When it failed to respond he slammed it to the floor in frustration, "Ran, do you have your phone?"

She nodded and fished a hand in between her breasts, she pulled her phone out and handed it over to Toushiro. She then went back to clutching her side and breathing heavily in an attempt to stem the pain. Toushiro's scowl deepened as he tapped away on the display, Rangiku looked at him and knew from his expression something wasn't right, "What is it Toshi?"

"I don't understand Rangiku.." Toushiro looked up from her phone and got to his feet, rotating slowly on the spot as he swept his eyes around the tunnel, "According to my phone, there were suppose to be seven Hollows. Only six attacked us and your phone isn't registering any further threats. Yet," He turned the phone so she could see the display.

On the screen she saw one lone red dot flashing away, "There's still the seventh one left."

"Yes, and its suppose to be right on top of us," Toushiro spun slowly on the spot again, "But I cant even sense it."

"You don't suppose its heading back to the train do you?" Rangiku, grimaced as she pulled herself back to her feet.

Toushiro swept his gaze over the four large holes in the tunnel walls and the two above in the ceiling, where the Hollows had been waiting. He walked over to the nearest hole in the wall and peered inside.

There wasn't much to see but from what he could tell, the part of the wall that'd been broken was an outer wall, with the inner wall about half a metre behind it. The Hollows had crammed themselves into the tight space between the two. He frowned, at least it explained why they couldn't get a visual on them right away, but it still didn't explain where the seventh Hollow could be lurking.

"Its not showing any signs of movement," Toushiro walked back over to Rangiku, "Besides if it did, I doubt it would get past the barrier."

They both heard a crackle in their ears "...tain Hitsu...Come in."

Toushiro tapped a finger against his earpiece accidentally pressing a button, during the ambush he'd forgotten that he'd been reporting in to the Head-Captain, "Soul Society do you read me?"

He waited several seconds but received no further reply, all he could hear was the hiss and crackle of static. Sighing he glanced back over to Rangiku, he felt concerned when he saw her sickly pale complexion.

"Rangiku are you feeling OK?" He asked cupping the side of her face, his fingers accidentally brushed over the earpiece she was still wearing, it was well disguised under her fiery locks.

"I'm OK," she lied. Rangiku's legs suddenly went weak beneath her and she toppled forward. Toushiro caught her and gently eased her down so she was sitting on the floor. She caught the worried look on Toushiro's face, "Actually no... its my side. It really hurts."

He crouched down in front of her, reaching for her side "Let me see."

Rangiku twisted herself away from his touch and batted his hands away, "Don't it hurts."

"Rangiku, I just want to check it. You know I wont hurt you." He saw her pouting slightly, but she allowed him access. Toushiro moved closer and saw four distinctive claw marks stretching from her ribs, down to her hip. He could see the blood oozing out of the wounds between the tears in her uniform. Toushiro gently parted the ripped fabric to get a look at the wound, he grimaced when he saw the green tinge surrounding the slash marks. The Hollow that had wounded Rangiku clearly had venomous claws.

"Is it bad Toshi?" Rangiku hissed between her teeth.

"It looks like the Hollow who did this, must've had poisonous claws."

Rangiku closed her eyes and nodded, "I figured as much."

"Does it burn?" Toushiro knew he couldn't do much about the poison, but he could freeze her wounds to stop the blood loss for a bit. Ideally they needed to get back to the Soul Society quickly. If only the last Hollow would quit its game of hide and seek. "Do you want me to freeze your wounds Rangiku? It will stem the blood loss and it may take the burn out of the poison."

"Sure, if you think it will help," Rangiku shifted uncomfortably so she was leaning more on her other side.

Toushiro handed the phone back to Rangiku, who flipped it open and began scanning the surrounding area in an attempt to distract herself from the burning pain in her side. She felt a sharp tug and the sound of ripping fabric reached her ears, "Toshi?"

"I can see it better now," was his way of explanation, "OK Ran, this may feel a little chilly."

Rangiku who'd been keeping her eyes firmly on the phone in her hand, gasped loudly when she felt like she'd been tossed head first into a frozen lake, cold needles crept across her side which instantly numbed the pain.

"How does that feel now?" Toushiro asked, taking her hand and squeezing it for comfort.

"A lot better, thanks," she managed through chattering teeth, "What do we do now?"

Toushiro rose to his feet, "Here, let me help you up."

Rangiku wrapped an arm around Toushiro's shoulder and he gently wrapped an arm around her side. He then eased her up so they were both standing, he kept his arm wrapped around her waist just in case she toppled over again.

Toushiro was just pondering the next course of action when an odd tremor briefly shuddered the floor, he heard Rangiku gasp.

"Did you feel that Toshi?" She dropped her hand from around Toushiro's shoulder and flipped her phone open.

"Yeah I did," Toushiro frowned and his hand automatically went for Hyourimaru's handle.

Rangiku's eyes fixated on the lone red dot that still hadn't shown any signs of movement, she sighed "I think my phone is broken."

"...tain Hitsugaya,... come in...assistance?" The broken voice coming through the static filled channel sounded a lot like Ukitake.

"Soul Society do you read me? Please repeat. There is interference on the line. Repeat, there is-" Toushiro paused when he felt another shuddering tremor shake the ground, this one was so much stronger then before.

Rangiku's phone suddenly came to life beeping erratically, neither of them needed to look at it to know it was the main Hollow they were here for, finally making its appearance. The ground beneath their feet began to tremble, then slowly the trembling increased in intensity until it felt like an all out earthquake.

Toushiro quickly scanned his eyes around the tunnel, he took in the holes in the wall and the holes in the ceiling. Even he had to admit, it'd been pretty cunning of the Hollows to hide out in the walls. But even so, he couldn't imagine a menos class Hollow being able to fit in such a small gap. Unless it was below them, deep down in the ground, maybe taking refuge in the sewers that Toushiro knew ran under the subway. He'd looked through all the blueprints and plans of the place prior to starting the investigation.

The floor shook violently and Toushiro's eyes went wide, realisation suddenly dawning on him. The tremors! The Hollow was tying to force itself up through the ground from the sewers.

"RANGIKU! WE NEED TO MOVE NOW!" He yelled as he spun on the spot and grabbed Rangiku's arm and began dragging her along behind him.

They had managed to move five metres from where they were standing previously, before the floor of the tunnel exploded out like a giant mole hill. The force of the explosion, coupled with the strong foul spiritual pressure that flooded the tunnel, slammed into Toushiro and Rangiku knocking them both off their feet and slamming them into the ground.

Toushiro recovered first and quickly jumped back to his feet, Hyourimaru's blade was vibrating beneath his fingers, letting him know he was ready for a good fight.

Toushiro watched as a huge, hulking Humanoid form emerged slowly from the hole in the ground. The Hollow kept rising until its huge oversized head bumped the top of the tunnels ceiling. Due to the creatures size it could only squeeze the upper part of its body into the vast tunnel and stupidly enough, the Hollow had trapped both of its arms by its side when it had tried to emerge from the hole. The creature roared when it realised it was trapped, and it raised its pressure in frustration. When the pressure hit Toushiro he recognised it to be at the level of an Adjuchas class Menos.

"Toshi.." Rangiku dragged herself to her feet and slipped into a stance right by Toushiro's side, "What's an Adjuchas doing down here?"

Toushiro scowled, the tight grip he had on Hyourimaru's handle was turning his knuckles white, "Good question."

The Adjuchas fixed its gaze on them and opened its mouth in an earth shattering roar, which made both of their ears ring. While its mouth was open, a small red dot formed, which quickly grew in size and power.

"Cero!" Toushiro stepped in front of Rangiku shielding her body, he stretched his arm out, the palm of his hand facing the Adjuchas. He began to quickly utter an enchantment and pour his spiritual pressure into creating a golden barrier that popped into life before them. "Stay behind me Rangiku, this barrier wont shield us entirely," he yelled over his shoulder, "But it should absorb some of that cero."

No sooner had the words left his mouth, the Adjuchas fired off its cero which came hurtling towards them at a blinding speed. Toushiro braced himself, he knew this was going to be painful but it couldn't be helped, there was no way to dodge it in this tunnel.

The cero slammed into his barrier with such force it actually pushed him back a few inches. Luckily the barrier seemed to be holding and just to be on the safe side he began pumping a bit more of his pressure into maintaining it. He felt his feet slide back a few more inches and his back pressed against Rangiku's front, he felt her hand fisting the back of his uniform.

The force of the cero was putting great pressure on his shield and through the bright red light surrounding them, he saw cracks beginning to form where his palm was resting against it. His fingers began to burn and it travelled to his hand, then through his wrist, before blazing a burning trail up his arm. The cracks were growing bigger, yet the cero didn't seem to be running out of steam any time soon.

"GRAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Toushiro's legs began to tremble from the strain as he desperately tried to maintain the shield for as long as possible.

The shield jolted but Toushiro hardly felt it, his entire arm had gone numb from his shoulder right down to his fingertips. The shield shattered like glass and the explosive force behind it slammed fully into him, lifting him off his feet. He felt his back connect fully with Rangiku and she too was swept off her feet. They were thrown back a good ten metres before they both crashed in a heap on the floor, where they came skidding to a stop.

"Rangiku?" Toushiro's voice was hoarse and he felt like he'd been hit by a bus. He growled as he rolled off his back and onto his front. As he did so he caught sight of his charred left arm and quickly averted his eyes choosing instead to focus on Rangiku, who he'd actually rolled off.

"Rangiku!" He crawled back over to her side and cupped her cheek, "Wake up."

Rangiku stirred and peered at him through pain filled eyes, "Toshi," she whispered.

He felt a stab of guilt in the pit of his stomach, it was obvious Rangiku was even more injured then before, "Stay here." He dragged himself back to his feet and picked Hyourimaru up off the floor. He took one last look back at Rangiku before he broke into a run, charging back towards the giant Menos. As he ran ahead he raised his spiritual pressure and screamed "BANKAI!"

As Toushiro disappeared down the tunnel, Rangiku saw his icy wings materialize. She pulled herself up and allowed the brief dizziness to pass before she grabbed Haineko and pushed herself back to her feet.

"Rangiku, do you read me?" Ukitake's voice sounded perfectly clear in her ear.

"Captain Ukitake?"

"Rangiku, do you and Toushiro require any assistance?"

Rangiku looked over to Toushiro and watched as he battled with the Adjuchas, he seemed to be holding up quite well despite his injuries. Rangiku's feet began to move of their own accord, carrying her closer to where Toushiro was fighting.

"Rangiku?" Ukitake prompted when he received no reply.

"Stand by Captain Ukitake," she replied politely. As she neared Toushiro's position, she saw the Adjuchas open its mouth, preparing for what she assumed would be another Cero. She knew there was no way Toushiro could avoid another blast like before, "Toushiro!" She screamed in warning as she raised Haineko's blade, "Growl Haineko!"

She directed the ashy particles of her blade towards the Adjuchas, aiming for its open mouth. She allowed the ash to flow inside, invading the its system internally. The Adjuchas roared in pain and began to thrash about distracted from forming another Cero.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Toushiro charged forward "Ryusenka!" As he plummeted his blade deep into the beasts white mask, a huge burst of ice erupted from the point of contact which encased the Adjuchas, freezing it.

Toushiro flashed stepped away and landed neatly next to Rangiku, "Rangiku you're injured, I told you stay back."

"You're injured too," she pointed out. She flicked her wrist to call back the particles of her blade however nothing happened and all she had in her hand was the hilt of Haineko.

Toushiro quirked an eyebrow at her before smirking, "Allow me," he flicked his sword to the right and the ice before them shattered into pieces, taking the Adjuchas trapped inside along with it. Rangiku's blade re-materialized and she placed it back in its sheath on her waist, Toushiro flicked the blood off his blade and slid it back in place over his shoulder.

"Toshi your arm..."

"Its OK, it just looks worse then what it actually is," Toushiro waved away her concern.

"Liar, you're in just as much pain as what I am," Rangiku sank down to the ground cradling her side, "Does this mean we can go back now?"

Toushiro looked over his shoulder at the mass of destruction in the tunnel, "I need to contact the Soul Society, I think we'll need a clean up crew this time. Plus I want to get you to the Fourth as soon as possible, I don't like the look of that poison in your wounds. Do you have your phone Rangiku?" He turned back to face her and froze, "Rangiku!"

He hurried over to her prone form and cradled her in his arms. He brushed her hair away from her sweat soaked face and noticed how cold she felt to his touch, which was saying something considering he'd been merged with Hyourimaru only a few seconds prior. Shrugging out of his Captains haori, he wrapped the garment around her back as best he could. It was small and probably wouldn't offer her much warmth, but it would have to do for now. He quickly glanced around the tunnel for Rangiku's phone. His stomach dropped when he saw it smashed up and discarded a few metres away, "Dammit!" Not only was his phone smashed up and useless, so was Rangiku's. He tapped the device in his ear hoping the channel was clear, "Soul Society do you read me? I'm requesting emergency passage through the precipice world. Come in."

All he could hear was the usual static and he suspected that when he was slammed against the tunnel wall earlier, he must have damaged the device. Growling, he got to his feet and held the butt of Hyourimaru out in front of him. Once the Senkaimon materialized before him, he placed Hyourimaru back over his shoulder and bent down to scoop Rangiku's prone form into his arms. It felt awkward and painful with his charred left arm, so he readjusted and draped Rangiku over his right shoulder, hooking his arm around her knees so she wouldn't slip off.

He knew it would be dangerous crossing the Dangai Precipice World without prior authorization and he had no way of knowing whether the cleaner was due to pass through or not, but he forced those thoughts to the back of his mind as he stepped through the gate.

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><p>Toushiro had made it two thirds of the way through the precipice world before he needed to stop. He knew it wasn't wise to linger between the worlds, but Rangiku's condition had him concerned. He eased her off his shoulder and lowered her to the ground. The part of his uniform covering his right shoulder was soaked through with Rangiku's sweat and the damp fabric clung to his skin.<p>

He knew it was the poison in her system that was causing the fever and it alarmed him just how quickly she seemed to be deteriorating. He placed two fingers against her neck seeking out her pulse, which seemed slow and irregular.

Toushiro cupped the side of her face and leant close to her ear, "Stay with me Rangiku, we're nearly home. Just hang in there."

He was about to move away when he heard an odd chirping noise, it puzzled him at first as to what it could be and he leant closer to Rangiku sure that the sound had originated from her. As he got closer he heard a very faint voice.

"Come in, do you read me?"

His eyes lit up and he swept Rangiku's hair away from her ear to reveal her earpiece. He carefully extracted it from her ear while at the same time removing his own. Once he clipped Rangiku's device onto his ear he could immediately hear the Head-Captains voice, along with Ukitake and Unohana.

"Soul Society do you read me?" He heard the voices on the other side fall silent.

"We hear you," Came the Head-Captains voice, "What is your status Captain Hitsugaya, was the mission successful?"

"We took care of the Hollow situation and I'm currently passing through the precipice world. Rangiku's in bad shape and requires urgent medical attention."

"Very well. I shall notify the Fourth to be on stand by, I expect a full report on your return to Seireitei."

"Understo-" Toushiro felt the floor start to vibrate. He clenched his teeth tightly, scowling at the irony. He glanced over his shoulder and saw a small yellow light glowing in the darkness, rapidly growing in size, "Cleaner!"

He grabbed Rangiku and tossed her back over his shoulder and jumped back to his feet, sprinting in the opposite direction.

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><p>Standing outside the Fourth division, Ukitake paced back and forth, "Why haven't they arrived yet?" He asked for the third time in less then a minute, his agitation was as clear as day.<p>

"Juushiro, try to calm down," Unohana placed a gentle hand on his arm, "Its not good for your illness when you get all worked up and agitated."

"But Retsu!" Ukitake's eyes widened and he placed two large hands on Unohana's tiny shoulders, "They're both injured, what if they don't have the energy to out run the cleaner!"

"I'm sure they'll get through just fine," Unohana's serene air never faltered once, "It looks like they're here now anyway."

Ukitake turned to look and sure enough a senkaimon was just beginning to materialize on the other side of the courtyard. Unohana had a small relief team standing by with stretchers and they all stood to attention waiting.

The senkaimon opened up blasting them all with a wave of energy, which blew around the courtyard whipping back their hair and robes. Ukitake watched as Toushiro came flying out of the gate with Rangiku draped over his shoulder. He landed awkwardly on his feet and went tumbling forward. Toushiro somehow managed to place Rangiku down as he were stumbling around, before finally falling flat on his face.

It was obvious that Rangiku was in a bad way and Unohana swept over to her with the relief team on her heels. Ukitake hurried forward too and as he drew closer Toushiro rolled himself onto his back.

Ukitake grinned down at Toushiro who was sporting a very hot and sweaty face, which was covered with various cuts, bruises and blood stains, "Welcome back Shiro-chan," he greeted warmly.

Toushiro stared back at him panting heavily, "That really sucked."

"At least you're back safely," Ukitake pointed out smiling.

"It was too close," Toushiro turned his gaze away from Ukitake and glanced over to where Unohana and her team were lifting Rangiku onto a stretcher, "For a moment back there... I didn't think I could out run the cleaner."

"But you did Toushiro," Ukitake held an hand out to help him back up to his feet, "Can you get up?"

Toushiro waved his charred arm in front of him, "Give me a minute."

Once the relief team had Rangiku secured on the stretcher, they rushed off across the courtyard and carried her up the steps into the Fourth. Unohana turned her attention to him, "Toushiro do you have any serious injuries that need tending to?"

"I'm OK, just a few cuts and bruises," He eased himself back to his feet and looked up at Unohana and Ukitake.

"Very well, I shall go on ahead and tend to Rangiku," As Unohana turned to head into the Fourth she gently said, "I'll have Isane or Hanataro see to that arm of yours. It looks pretty serious too."

Toushiro's eyes widened and Ukitake smirked at him, "There's no point in hiding things from Retsu, Toushiro. She doesn't miss a thing."

"Indeed," Unohana's voice floated back to them.

"See," Ukitake's grin widened, "Now if you'll excuse me, its time I picked Kotaro up from Nanao."

Toushiro smiled lightly at the mention of his son, "How's he been?"

"Oh he's been a pleasure to have Toushiro," Ukitake smiled fondly.

"I'm worried about Rangiku," Toushiro's gaze seemed focused on the Fourth, but Ukitake could tell he was deep in thought.

"Look Toushiro," Ukitake began, Toushiro returned his focus back to him, "Kotaro seems perfectly happy for the time being and he knows you and Rangiku aren't due to return back yet. So if you want to stay by Rangiku's side for a few days, its no trouble at all. Like I said, he's a joy to have around."

"Thanks but you can tell him we are back," Toushiro's light smile returned to his face, "Just let him know that I'm looking after Rangiku and wont be home until tomorrow."

"OK Toushiro."

Toushiro sighed heavily, "I suppose I best get healed up myself, I need to report in to the Head-Captain too."

Ukitake bid farewell to Toushiro and watched as he disappeared into the Fourths main entrance, smiling he turned on his heel and began the walk back to the Eighth Division.

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><p>I've been meaning to ask for the last two chapters whether anyone could suggest a name or phrase Nanao could use for Kotaro. Rangiku's is sweetie, Toushiro's is Little man. Ukitake uses young man, Unohana says Sunshine and Shunsui calls him little buddy and Momo obviously calls him Shiro-chan. So if any of you would like to suggest something for Nanao that would'nt seem OOC it would be greatly appriciated. Thanks for now and I'll see you all next Chapter!<p> 


	13. Chapter 13

Hiya guys, finally managed to get this chapter out at last, been a tough couple of weeks. My illness has been playing up a bit and I've struggled with my energy levels alot. Thank you to everybody who reviewed the last chapter, all your comments made me smile and helped to cheer me up, so Thank you!

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 13<p>

"You're awfully quiet Kotaro," Ukitake observed, as they wondered through the streets of the Seireitei heading back to the Thirteenth division, "Are you feeling all right?" It was well past midday and they were both pretty hungry, Ukitake reminded himself that it'd been an early start today.

"I feel tired Grandad," Kotaro answered quietly as he plodded on by his side.

"Come here young man," Ukitake bent down and picked Kotaro up, "We'll have some lunch when we get back, then you can have a nap."

Kotaro rested his head on Ukitake's shoulder and yawned.

"Did you have a nice time with Nanao?"

He felt Kotaro nod against his shoulder "I drew Nan-nan a picture."

"Lovely, did she like it?" Ukitake smiled, it was always easy talking with Kotaro.

"She asked if she could keep it," Kotaro replied sleepily, "Oh I drew a picture for you and Gran-Gran too and one for Mummy and Daddy."

"Will you show me them when we get back?" Ukitake asked resuming his walk.

Kotaro was quiet for a long time before he answered, at first Ukitake thought he'd fallen asleep, "Yes Grandad."

"Kotaro."

"Hmm?" Kotaro replied softly.

Ukitake threw his hand up to his mouth and turned his head away as his chest hitched and a loud shattering cough escaped his throat.

Kotaro perked up and peered at him with concern in his teal eyes, "Grandad are you OK?"

"I'm fine Kotaro," Ukitake smiled reassuringly once the cough had died down.

"So we don't need to see Gran-Gran?" Kotaro asked yawning loudly again.

"No we don't young man," Ukitake continued walking, they weren't that far away from the Thirteenth now, "Remember what I told you Kotaro. Retsu is a very busy lady and to only call her if its an emergency."

Kotaro stared back at Ukitake with a serious look on his face, Ukitake recognised that look from Toushiro. He knew Kotaro was trying to determine whether he was being truthful or not about his condition. After a few more seconds Kotaro's face broke out into a wide smile "Maybe Grandad should have a nap too when we get back," Kotaro added a little nod on the end to make it final, just like Rangiku would.

He laughed, "As much as I'd like to Kotaro, I do believe I'll have a pile of paperwork waiting for me back at the office."

Ukitake walked the rest of the way in silence, he suspected that Kotaro had nodded off to sleep and he didn't particularly want to disturb him to find out. So when he finally walked through the main gates of his division and declared "Where here," and received no reply, his suspicion was confirmed.

He followed the usual path that led to the administration building and his office which happened to take him past the training yards. As he walked past one of the training yards a greeting of "Good Afternoon Captain Ukitake," halted him in his tracks.

Turning to the source of the voice he smiled when he saw Rukia in one of the smaller yards, training a small group of new female recruits.

"Good Afternoon Rukia," he greeted as he wondered over to where Rukia was standing. All the new recruits had bowed at his arrival and were glancing at him and Kotaro who was draped over his shoulder fast asleep.

"Hows goes the training Rukia?" He asked conversationally.

"Very well Captain. I have just assessed our new recruits basic sword abilities and was just about to move onto testing their basic kido abilities," Rukia replied with a small smile.

"Good job ladies, keep up the good work," he swept his eyes over the group of ladies smiling his trademark smile, causing several of them to blush. He returned his gaze back to Rukia "I shall leave you to get on." As he turned to leave, he paused and turned back to Rukia, "That reminds me Rukia. Could you stop by my office once you have finished here. I have something I need to discuss with you."

"Of course Captain," Rukia answered looking a little puzzled, wondering if she'd done something wrong.

Ukitake noticed her expression, "Don't worry Rukia, its nothing to worry about. I just simply need to discuss something with you."

"I understand Captain Ukitake," Rukia gave him a little bow and returned her attention back to her small training group.

As Ukitake turned and walked away from the training yard, he heard several whispers and giggles from the assembled group.

"OK back to training!" Rukia yelled.

Ukitake grinned as he walked away. Rukia was going to make a great Lieutenant, he was certain of it. He couldn't wait to break the news to her. As for the group of new recruits giggling at him, he was used to it after all these years. He knew what effect his smile had on the ladies.

Finally reaching the administration building he stepped through the door and walked the familiar path to his office. As he neared his two third seats office, he could hear Kiyone and Sentaro arguing loudly. He hoped they were too busy arguing and that they wouldn't notice that he'd returned, the last thing he wanted were for them to wake Kotaro up.

He was just about to pass by their door when it was wrenched open from the inside, Kiyone and Sentaro were both trying to be the first to muscle their way out. So much for sneaking past he thought, they most likely felt his presense approaching long before he arrived.

"Let me tell him," Grumbled Sentaro.

"No way!" Kiyone retorted.

Ukitake cleared his throat and both their gazes snapped to him. He simply held one finger up to his mouth indicating they should be quiet. He then angled his body so they could see Kotaro napping away on his left shoulder.

"Sorry Sir!" They both chorused in a hushed whisper. Clearly they had learnt their lesson from the other day.

Ukitake then indicated that they should wait here while he carried on down the hallway, past the empty Lieutenant's office and onto his own office that sat at the end of the hallway.

Once inside he awkwardly shrugged out of his haori and placed it down on his couch. He then transferred Kotaro to the couch, using his haori as a blanket and tucking him in. He swept over to his desk and picked up Yori and then placed it next to Kotaro who reached a tiny hand out and pulled it closer, snuggling his face into the soft plush toy.

Ukitake's smile slipped from his face when he noticed a small amount of bruising ringing Kotaro's wrist. He stepped closer to kneel beside the couch and carefully held Kotaro's arm gently trying to get a closer look, wondering how he could have received a bruise like that. He was pretty sure he hadn't noticed it last night when he'd given Kotaro a bath.

He tucked Kotaro's arm back under his haori and leant forward to plant a kiss on his forehead, he got back to his feet and headed back to Kiyone and Sentaro who he could hear arguing yet again.

He returned a few minutes later with a fresh stack of reports and the appropriate paperwork he would need to fill out, in order for Rukia to become his Lieutenant, provided she agreed of course.

He dumped everything on his desk and walked back over to Kotaro who was happily snoozing. Curious he pulled back his haori to take a second look at Kotaro's wrist, it was puzzling for him just how Kotaro had managed to do it.

Ukitake knelt beside the couch and lifted up Kotaro's arm and quickly realised it must have been the other wrist, placing it down gently he reached for the other wrist and froze.

"How is that possible?" He asked himself as he stared at both of Kotaro's wrists, which were both free of bruising, "I just saw it less then five minutes ago."

"Err Captain Ukitake," There was a light tap on his office door which he'd left open, "I'm not interrupting anything am I?"

"No no, come on in Rukia," Ukitake answered without taking his eyes off Kotaro's wrists. He was having trouble understanding how one minute Kotaro's wrist had seemed badly bruised, then less then five minutes later it'd completely vanished.

"Sir, is everything all right?" Rukia asked aware that her Captain was somewhat distracted.

Ukitake stood up and switched his focus to Rukia, "Ah Rukia you came," he smiled brightly, indicating she should sit, "Please have a seat, we have much to discuss."

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><p>Toushiro had just been patched up by Isane, who was now escorting him through the corridors of the Fourth division. His left arm had been bandaged up and secured in a sling. Isane had informed him that the cero had caused third degree burns to his arm, which would take some time to heal fully. Apart from his arm and a few cuts and bruises in other places, he'd managed to get back from the mission in fairly good shape. He just hoped Rangiku would pull through too.<p>

Isane stopped outside a room and Toushiro who'd been following behind slowed down. She turned to him and smiled "I believe Captain Unohana is still treating Rangiku-san, but if you don't mind waiting here a minute, I can see how she is doing."

Toushiro nodded, "Thank you."

"I'll be back shortly Captain Hitsugaya," Isane opened the door and stepped inside, quietly pushing the door closed behind her.

Toushiro glanced around the deserted corridor then chose a spot to lean against the wall. He slid his eyes closed and sighed heavily.

While it was good that they'd managed to complete the mission and get home early liked they'd planned, he couldn't help but feel some guilt at Rangiku's condition and the circumstances of their return.

He kept thinking back over the events in his mind, wondering if he could have prevented Rangiku's injuries in anyway. In an ambush like that, it would have been highly unlikely that they would've come away from it without any injuries.

All of the Hollows had been of an higher level and it wasn't uncommon to come across lesser Hollows which could poison their enemies with just one swipe of a claw. So it was reasonable to assume that the Hollows poison that'd injured Rangiku, must have been a lot more potent given the Hollow was of a higher level.

Toushiro reached out with his senses and felt for Rangiku's presence. He could feel her faint energy and could tell that she'd been stabilized however he knew that she was very ill and weak. He could also feel Unohana's strong energy pouring into Rangiku, doing her best to heal her patient. He pulled his awareness back not wanting to interfere in the healing process.

Instead he extended his awareness out towards the Thirteenth, where he stumbled upon Kotaro's presence instantly. He could tell by the calm steady rhythm of Kotaro's energy that his son was napping peacefully, he wrapped his energy around Kotaro like a hug. Even though Kotaro was fast asleep, Toushiro knew that on a subconscious level Kotaro would sense his presence.

Focusing on Kotaro helped to ease his troubled mind, at least he'd gotten Rangiku and himself back to the Seireitei and back to Kotaro.

A gentle hand landing on his shoulder pulled his attention away from his son. He snapped his eyes open to find Unohana standing before him, "Toushiro."

"Unohana," he blinked a few times to refocus his vision, "Hows Rangiku?"

The door to Rangiku's room opened and from it emerged Isane and Hanataro, who were wheeling a trolley out which had various pieces of medical equipment, scraps of material and other medical supplies piled up on it.

"Her condition is stable now," Unohana began to explain in a reassuring tone, "I've managed to extract all of the poison in her system and once the fever goes down she will recover much quicker. As for her wounds, I've cleaned and bandaged them up, however I'm reluctant to heal them fully until her fever breaks. I want to avoid causing further stress to her system. The Hollows poison was quite potent," she finished with a sympathetic expression.

"I see," Toushiro pushed himself away from the wall, "Thank you."

"You don't need to thank me Toushiro," Unohana smiled softly, "Would you like to see Rangiku?"

Toushiro nodded, "Yes please."

Unohana led him into Rangiku's room and stood to one side, Toushiro swept straight over to Rangiku's bed. He crumpled a little inside when he saw her lying there, looking deathly pale with dark circles ringing her eyes and hooked up to a machine that was steadily beeping away in the corner.

He reached an hand out and cupped the side of her face, gently stroking his thumb over her cheek. Her skin was burning beneath his fingers, as he leant his face closer to hers he could feel the heat radiating off her, yet he could see her body shivering under the blankets that were placed over her.

"She looks so ill," he commented as he perched himself on the edge of her bed.

Unohana glided over to the bed, "I'm afraid she will be for the next couple of days Toushiro. The best we can do for her now is to let her rest and to keep monitoring her."

Toushiro planted a soft kiss on Rangiku's forehead, "Don't worry Rangiku, you're in good hands here."

Rangiku stirred in her sleep and began mumbling incoherently. As he listened to her, he thought he could pick out his and Kotaro's names.

Toushiro frowned, "Can she hear me?"

"It would appear so Toushiro, but the fever is making her delirious. I should think that on some level she knows that you are here," Unohana answered honestly.

They were silent for several minutes and Toushiro was the first to break it, "Will I be able to stay with her for a bit Unohana?"

Unohana smiled and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, "Stay as long as you like Toushiro. Isane is covering the night shift tonight and if you need anything you only need to ask."

"Thanks," Toushiro ran his fingers through Rangiku's long fiery locks.

"Just make sure you get some rest too Toushiro," Unohana stepped away from the bed and picked up a folder from the side table. She made a few checks and noted down a few things then returned the folder to the side table.

"Toshi.."

"Shh its OK Rangiku, I'm here," he said in a low soothing voice "I'm right here," he gently held Rangiku's hand in his own.

"I'll let you have some time together Toushiro, I'll be back in a little while," Unohana gave his shoulder a little squeeze before she quietly walked over to the door, before she closed the door behind her she said, "Talk to her Toushiro, even if her mind doesn't understand the words, just hearing a familiar voice will help her," Unohana then closed the door and left.

Toushiro glanced back at Rangiku and frowned, not really sure what he should talk to her about. He sat there for several long minutes holding her hand, then inspiration struck. He cleared his throat and took a deep breath.

"You know Rangiku, I cant actually remember the last time we had a holiday together. I know for certain that we both have plenty of time saved up, we should definitely go somewhere once you're feeling better. It would be our first proper family holiday since Kotaro was born, maybe its time we introduced him to the world of the living. What do you think?"

Toushiro paused a small smile forming on his lips, "There's so many interesting places we could take him. The beach, bowling, the cinema, an aquarium, theme parks, can you remember that huge toy shop we saw that time? Of course he's going to need a gigai and we'd have to buy him some clothes from the living world first, so he blends in," Toushiro paused grinning, "Obviously I'll leave the clothes to you."

"Its his birthday in October too, I cant believe he's going to be five. Maybe we could schedule some time off and have a holiday then."

"It would be fun to go to the park and teach him how to play soccer," Toushiro gave Rangiku's hand another squeeze, "And then there's all the different types of food to try that they have in the living world, pizza, fries, ice-cream, hot dogs... it will be really fun."

Toushiro's stomach gave a loud rumble and he looked away from Rangiku and glanced at the clock. It was almost four in the afternoon, no wonder he was ready for something to eat.

He returned his gaze to Rangiku and was surprised to see two blue eyes staring back at him sleepily, "Rangiku?"

"That sounds really nice Toshi," she replied in a very faint voice.

"You should be resting Rangiku," He reached forwards and planted a small kiss on her lips, by the time he'd pulled back again Rangiku had closed her eyes, he couldn't be sure whether she'd fallen asleep again.

"Toshi," she whispered keeping her eyes closed.

Toushiro had to lean in close to hear, "What is it Rangiku?"

"Go home to Kotaro, you don't need to stay here all night with me."

"Are you sure?" He asked frowning.

"Give him a big mummy hug from me," Rangiku requested in that same weak voice, before finally surrendering to sleep once again.

Toushiro slid off the bed and planted one last kiss on Rangiku's forehead "Whatever you say Rangiku."

He'd stayed with Rangiku for another hour before he finally decided to leave. Before he left the Fourth he'd informed Unohana of his brief chat with Rangiku and now he was stepping out into the chilly early evening air. Instead of going straight over to the Thirteenth, he decided to go to the First division to report in to the Head-Captain first. Once that was out the way, he could spend the rest of the evening with Kotaro.

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><p>Back at the Thirteenth division Ukitake placed his writing brush down and flexed his wrist until the feeling returned back to his hand. He stood up and stretched, working the knots out of his body while breathing in deeply. When he exhaled he felt his lungs hitch and he was seized by a violent coughing fit.<p>

"Damn it," he wheezed as he brought his hand away from his mouth and saw a few specks of blood dotting his palm.

Ukitake glanced over to the couch where he was amazed to see that Kotaro was still sleeping soundly. He glanced at the clock and was surprised to see it was a little after five. It would soon be time for dinner and Kotaro hadn't even had any lunch today.

He wiped his hand with some tissue and stepped over to the couch, it was definitely time to call it a day, "Kotaro," he called gently nudging his shoulder, "Its time to wake up."

Kotaro stirred briefly and rolled over onto his side snuggling deeper into Ukitake's haori.

"Come on sleepy head," Ukitake nudged Kotaro's shoulder a bit more, "Aren't you hungry?"

He pulled away abruptly when another violent coughing fit struck him. The loud shattering coughs were enough to wake Kotaro, who snapped his eyes open and sat upright. Looking around his eyes fell on Ukitake who was semi doubled over hacking and spluttering away.

"Grandad!" Kotaro called out while scrambling off the couch and padding across the floor to him, "Do you need help?" Kotaro wrapped his tiny arms around Ukitake's leg and clung onto him.

Ukitake's coughing fit died down and he took a few moments to breathe. He lifted a hand and let it come to a rest on top of Kotaro's head. He felt hot and uncomfortable after the recent fit, and he was aware of a bead of sweat slowly trickling down the side of his face.

He peered down at Kotaro who was staring back at him looking a bit worried. He smiled back at him lightly, "I'm all right Kotaro, there's no need to worry," his voice came out hoarse and scratchy.

"You said that earlier," Kotaro pointed out "And now your worse."

"Kotaro," Ukitake sighed before bending down and scooping him up into his arms. He stepped over to the couch to sit down and placed Kotaro in his lap, "Now listen to me young man."

When he was satisfied that he had Kotaro's full attention he carried on, "I know it can be alarming when a coughing fit comes on from out the blue and yes, some can be quite severe and others can be quite mild. But please don't worry so much when one does occur, I have Retsu and Shunsui who do enough of that for me."

Kotaro shifted so he was kneeling on Ukitake's lap and facing him resting his little hands against his chest, "But Daddy asked me to keep an eye on you."

"Did he now?" Ukitake asked grinning.

"Yeah, he said its an important job and he's counting on me," Kotaro replied with a serious expression.

Ukitake laughed loudly at that comment, which quickly turned into another coughing fit. By the time it'd died down his ribs were aching from both laughing and coughing.

"What's so funny?" Kotaro asked with a small frown.

Ukitake shook his head, "Its nothing Kotaro, you just remind me so much of your father at times. Kotaro's frown turned into a pout and he withdrew his hands from Ukitake's chest and folded them across his own. Ukitake sighed, "And your mother too."

Kotaro's eyes suddenly went wide and he stared at Ukitake's face.

"What is it Kotaro?" Ukitake asked wiping a hand across his mouth, when his hand came away he saw a smearing of blood on his thumb, "Oh. Don't worry Kotaro its nothing to worry about."

Kotaro's eyebrows knitted together with concern, "Grandad are you sure you're OK?"

"Of course I am Kotaro, however if you want to help me, how about giving me one of your special hugs?" Ukitake asked as he pulled Kotaro closer into a hug and took a deep breath, releasing it slowly.

During their hug, Ukitake concentrated on his breathing exercises and soon felt a cool soothing sensation wash over him. He'd never felt anything like it before, so he just put it down to him feeling hot from his coughing fit before and he was now just simply cooling down.

After several minutes Ukitake heard a strange grumbling noise. He pulled away from Kotaro and smirked at the small child, "Somebody sounds a little hungry."

Kotaro's face split into a wide grin which showed off his dimples, giving him a mischievous look, "I'm starving Grandad, I could eat a whole..." he broke off his gaze and looked up to the ceiling in thought, "A whole... tree!"

"A tree?" Ukitake asked confused.

"Yeah, because they're so big," Kotaro added as way of an explanation, "And I'm super hungry!"

"Ahh, I see," Ukitake replied quirking an eyebrow and grinning, "Well that's a shame if you'd rather eat a tree, because I was going to do us some noodles for dinner."

"Oh Oh Noodles!" Kotaro stood up on Ukitake's lap and began bouncing slightly, "I'd rather eat some of Grandads noodles!"

"Are you sure?" Ukitake smiled as he carefully placed Kotaro down on the floor, as he did so he felt uncomfortably hot again.

Kotaro reached for his hand and began bouncing on the spot excitedly, "Yeah!" Then he began dragging Ukitake towards the door that led through to his quarters.

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><p>Sometime later Ukitake rose to his feet leaving Kotaro at the low table to munch his way through a third bowl of noodles. He headed to the bathroom to start running a bath for Kotaro, which was part of his pre-bedtime routine which Rangiku had set for him.<p>

He figured after the extra long nap Kotaro had earlier, that he would probably not want to go to bed at the normal time. Also it would most likely be the last night Kotaro would be staying with him. So he decided that for once he would let Kotaro stay up a bit longer, maybe he would read him an extra story or two.

He heard a knock at his front door, followed by the sound of chopsticks being dropped, then he heard Kotaro bounding down the hallway, "Grandad! Grandad!"

Ukitake turned the bath taps off and turned to the door just as Kotaro came bursting in, "What is it Kotaro?"

"Grandad, somebody is knocking on the door," Kotaro disappeared from the doorway and went padding back down the hall.

Ukitake swept out of the bathroom and followed Kotaro, as he passed by the room he used for eating meals, Kotaro ducked back in and resumed scoffing his way through his bowl of noodles. Ukitake smiled and carried on through to the front door.

When he opened the door his smile widened at his visitor, "Well I wasn't expecting to see you so soon."

"Ukitake," Toushiro greeted quietly with a small smile on his tired face.

Ukitake looked Toushiro up and down, taking in his strapped up arm and the various cuts and bruises dotting his face, "Its good to see you back, hows Rangiku?"

"She's quite ill, Unohana's keeping her in the Fourth for a bit," Toushiro's smile slipped slightly.

Ukitake rested a hand on Toushiro's shoulder, "At least you got her back here to safety."

Toushiro looked up at him and nodded, "Yeah, I guess you're right."

"Hey Kotaro, are you going to come and say hello to our visitor?" Ukitake called through to the other room.

"Who is it Grandad? Is it Gran-Gran?" Came Kotaro's voice from the other room.

"No its not Gran-Gran."

"Uncle Shun-shun then?"

"No Kotaro, keep guessing."

"Auntie Nan-nan or Momo?"

"No, why don't you come in here and see?" Ukitake suggested. It was quite a while before Kotaro spoke up again.

"Grandad!" Kotaro called loudly from the other room.

"What is it Kotaro?" Ukitake yelled back.

"I cant come in just yet," Kotaro had a hint of worry in his voice.

"Why not?" Ukitake asked, eyebrows knitting together.

"I got a noodle stuck."

Toushiro smirked when he heard his sons comment and glanced at Ukitake enquiringly.

"How do you manage to get a noodle stuck?" Ukitake wondered aloud, before raising his voice, "Where is it stuck Kotaro?"

There was silence for a few seconds before Kotaro shouted back, "Up my nose."

Toushiro threw an hand up to stifle his snicker, while Ukitake had a revolted look on his face, "How did you get it stuck up there?"

"I was sipping the noodle water when I got a sniffle, so I sniffed and it shot up my nose!"

"Oh," Ukitake replied a little baffled.

Toushiro cleared his throat, "Hey little man, have you tried blowing your nose yet?"

There was a short silence from the other room which was interrupted by the sound of chopsticks being dropped and a bowl being placed down heavily on the table. Next it sounded like a stampede as Kotaro's hurried footsteps crashed through from the hallway. The door swung open with a heavy bang against the wall and Kotaro stood frozen in the doorway, with half a noodle dangling from his nose. His eyes locked on Toushiro and his whole face lit up, "DADDY!" He yelled before he flew across the room, charging at Toushiro.


	14. Chapter 14

Hello Readers! As always thank you to everyone who favourited/alerted this story and also a big thank you to the readers who left me a review for the last chapter ^_^ This chapter contains lots of fluff which acts as the proverbial calm before the storm which will be the next upcoming chapter. Until then Happy Reading!

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 14<p>

Toushiro was kneeling down on the floor with his right arm wrapped tightly around Kotaro's middle. His son had wrapped his arms tightly around his neck and was squeezing the life out of him in a suffocating hug.

"Daddy when did you get home?" Kotaro's voice was muffled from where his face was pressed against Toushiro's neck.

"Can I breathe little man?" Toushiro asked prising one of Kotaro's arms away from his neck.

"Sorry Daddy," Kotaro grinned while loosening his grip slightly. Kotaro peered at Toushiro and his smile turned into a frown, "Where's Mummy?"

Ukitake cleared his throat, "Toushiro, Kotaro would you like to come through to the other room?"

"Sure, thank you," Toushiro replied, scooping Kotaro up with his right arm and getting to his feet.

"But where's Mummy? Why isn't she here Daddy? Why is your arm like that? Did something happen?"

"I'll tell you in a minute Kotaro, I promise," Toushiro replied as he followed Ukitake through into his dining room. He settled himself down on the floor tucking his legs under the low table, Kotaro clambered onto his lap once he'd released his hold on him.

Toushiro plucked a tissue off the table, "Hold still Kotaro," with his one arm he awkwardly held Kotaro still while he used the tissue to wipe Kotaro's nose and pull the noodle strand free, "There, much better."

Kotaro tilted his head back, "Daddy, will you tell me now?"

"Here Toushiro," Ukitake placed a bowl of noodles on the table in front of him, "I'm sure you're hungry."

"Thank you," Toushiro happily accepted the bowl.

"DADDY!" Kotaro shouted crossly, while grabbing a fist full of his uniform, "Tell me!"

"Kotaro Hitsugaya," Toushiro wrapped his hand around Kotaro's wrist and prised it off his uniform. Keeping his hold on Kotaro's wrist he looked his son in the eye and said in a firm voice, "You do not speak to people in that tone of voice. And you do not grab people like that either. Its rude. I know you want to know where Mummy is, but you have to be patient for a minute. Do I make myself clear?"

Kotaro stared at him with shiny eyes and a wobbly lip, slowly he nodded his little head, "Sorry Daddy," he mumbled inaudibly, but Toushiro still managed to hear it.

"Come here little man," Toushiro pulled Kotaro into a hug to show that he was forgiven. Kotaro had a habit of getting upset whenever he or Rangiku had to go away on a mission. He also got equally upset when they returned. Toushiro felt Kotaro's body shake and knew that he was crying quietly into his shoulder. They sat in silence for several minutes and Toushiro ran a soothing hand up and down Kotaro's back. Once he was satisfied that Kotaro had calmed down he adjusted Kotaro so he was sitting comfortably on his lap.

"Me and your Mum got back from our mission a few hours ago Kotaro," He began. Kotaro lifted his head to look at him as he spoke, "As you can see, it didn't exactly go as smoothly as we'd hoped it would," Toushiro wiggled his bandaged fingers that were poking out from the sling.

"Is Mummy hurt too?" Kotaro asked a little sadly.

"Yes she is little man," Toushiro answered honestly, "And she will need to stay at the Fourth for a little while, until she is feeling better again," He saw Kotaro's bottom lip begin to wobble again so he hugged him, "Don't worry little man, Mummy is in good hands."

Kotaro nodded, "Is Gran-Gran looking after Mummy?"

"Yes she is Kotaro."

"Mummy will be fine then if Gran-Gran is looking after her," Kotaro mumbled into his neck, "Gran-Gran makes everybody feel better again."

Toushiro smiled, "Exactly little man, she will be fine."

Kotaro stared at him for a very long time, Toushiro smiled back at him and noticed that his eyes kept straying to his strapped up arm, "Daddy got hurt too."

"A little bit, I did this while I was protecting Mummy."

"How did you and Mummy get hurt Daddy?" Kotaro asked, curiosity was starting to get the better of him, Toushiro decided it was time for a change of subject.

"Its not important Kotaro, the point is we both got back home to you. Now enough about us what have you been up to with Grandad Ukitake while we've been away? I want a full report little man."

"Can I tell you after my bath Daddy?" Kotaro glanced at Toushiro, then over to Ukitake before yawning loudly, "Am I still allowed to sleep here tonight Grandad?"

"Of course young man, you're welcome to stay here any time you want for however long you want," Ukitake smiled, "But its up to your father."

"Daddy can I please stay here," Kotaro opened his mouth in a wide jaw cracking yawn, "I'm very tired."

"Tired already Kotaro?" Ukitake asked grinning, "You had a five hour nap earlier."

Toushiro's ears pricked up at that, the last time Kotaro went off sleeping for long periods of time during the day was when he wasn't sleeping well at night. He reminded himself that back then, Kotaro had been dreaming about monsters. But that had only turned out to be his Zanpakuto spirit and Hyourimaru, since then he'd been fine. Hyourimaru had been keeping him posted on the situation and Kotaro's spirit had been dormant ever since.

So he could rule that possibility out. The only other times Kotaro would sleep a lot would be when he was ill, or coming down with something.

"Kotaro," Toushiro looked closely at his son frowning.

Kotaro turned his gaze to him, "Yes Daddy?"

He seemed well enough and he knew Ukitake would have mentioned something if Kotaro had been feeling a bit off. He realised he'd been frowning so he straightened his face out into a smile, "Nothing little man, if you want to sleep here tonight, that's fine," he glanced at Ukitake, "Although I think Grandad will have to bathe you again instead of me," Toushiro indicated his left arm.

"Okay Daddy! I'll tell you everything afterwards," Kotaro beamed while jumping to his feet and hurrying over to Ukitake. He latched onto Ukitake's hand and began dragging him towards the bathroom. Kotaro was halfway through the door when he paused and looked back towards Toushiro, "Daddy are you staying for the night too?"

Ukitake grinned down at Kotaro and scooped him up into his arms, "Yes of course your father is staying for the night too. Toushiro I'll set up an extra futon for you next to Kotaro's." With that said Ukitake swept out of the room before Toushiro could have any say in the matter.

Toushiro chuckled to himself. He didn't mind where he stayed for the night, just as long as he was with Kotaro.

* * *

><p><em>Dark shadows were all that surrounded her in this strange place. She didn't even know where or what this place was. All she knew, was that it was a very strange place.<em>

_The darkness gave it a heavy, claustrophobic feeling, yet as she placed one foot in front of the other, she could have sworn the ground beneath her feet was soft and springy like grass. So maybe she was outside somewhere?_

_She thought she could sense movement behind her, so she spun around quickly only to find nothing._

"_Hello!" she called out, her voice echoing loudly, "Is someone there?"_

_She heard a small giggle and whipped around to her right, once again she saw nothing. _

"_I know you're there," She called out again, "Show yourself!"_

_She strained her ears to pick out any sounds, no matter how small. She just needed a small clue to help her figure out who was giggling and where they were._

_She wasn't aware that she'd closed her eyes until she felt a light tap on her left shoulder and her eyes snapped open. She spun to her left, eyes roaming around for the person who'd just tapped her shoulder._

"_She nearly saw you!" Came a sing-song voice from behind her which sounded distinctly girlish._

_She rotated slowly on the spot so she was side on towards the girls voice, and side on to where she'd felt the tap on her shoulder. _

_Someone was here, and that same someone clearly wanted to toy with her. Well they had another thing coming, because she disliked playing games. Sighing heavily she put a little venom into her voice, "Either show yourself or I'm leaving."_

"_Shut up! You're making her mad, I don't want her to leave yet," This time the voice was definitely boyish and it came from the same direction as the tap on her shoulder._

_So she was being double teamed, brilliant. As if it wasn't already hard enough to see in this place, now she had two unseen 'enemies' to worry about. She realised using the word 'enemies' was a bit strong, but until she knew who she was up against, that's what they were to her._

"_She cant just leave like that," stated the girlish voice, "Its against the rules."_

"_Does she even know how to leave?" Asked the boyish voice._

"_Probably not," replied the girl again, "But then again."_

"_It makes it more fun for us!" The boy concluded._

"_ENOUGH!" She yelled back at the two children. Were they children? They certainly sounded like it, "I'm leaving right now!"_

_She began walking briskly away from the two voices, determined to put as much distance between them as possible. She'd managed six steps before she felt two weights latch onto each of her arms._

"_You cant leave!" They both chorused at her, "Its against the rules."_

_She stopped abruptly and felt the two weights on her arms bump into her back. She reached out with her fingers and managed to grip both of them in each of her hands. She spun them around in front of her and was surprised to see two child like shadows standing before her. They barely reached her waist and she could tell from their outlines that they must be twins._

"_Uh oh!" The boys shadow on her left mumbled lazily, "She got me."_

"_At least she isn't leaving us now," The little girls shadow on her right flicked her head revealing two pigtails._

"_Look," She frowned deeply as she looked back and forth between the two children, forcing a calm patience she didn't feel, "Can you tell me where I am?"_

_The two children looked at each other before chorusing, "We cant tell you that!"_

"_Fine," She closed her eyes and gritted her teeth, "Then maybe you can tell me who the two of you are?"_

_The two twin shadows grinned back at her, "We cant tell you that!"_

_Grr! She was really starting to feel frustrated now, "You say its against the rules for me to just leave here. So tell me then, how can I leave?"_

_The two children stared at each other, it seemed like they were communicating between themselves silently._

"_We can tell her that... right?" The boy asked the girl uncertainly._

_The girl shadow began absent-mindedly twirling one of her pigtails around her finger, "I guess so... but I bet she wont do it."_

"_Do what?" She demanded impatiently._

_The boy shadow cleared his throat and stared back at her, "You can leave if you play a game with us and win."_

"_I do not play games, I don't have the time," she replied primly._

"_I told you she wouldn't play with us," The girl shadow said sulkily pulling on her pigtail._

"_I told you she was boring, all she ever does is Work! Work! Work!" The boy shadow yanked his arm free from her grasp, "She's suppose to follow the rules like she always does."_

"_Yeah! And the rule is she's got to play with us if she wants to leave!" The girl grumbled back, before mumbling quietly, "I bet he would play with us."_

"_I bet he would," agreed the boy._

"_Whose he?" She asked sternly._

_The two twin shadows folded their arms across their chests and glared at her before yelling back, "WE CANT TELL YOU THAT!" They both spun on their heels and began walking away from her._

"_Hey wait! Come back here!" She called after them. They just ignored her and carried on skipping away._

_She hurried after them, walking briskly to close the gap between them, "Look I'm sorry if I upset you, clearly there's been a misunderstanding here."_

_The two twins stopped and turned to face her, the girl shadow spoke up first, "All you have to do is play one game with us, why is that such a misunderstanding?" _

"_Just the one game?" She asked, "Okay, I'll play with you. Right now."_

_The boy shadow shook his head slowly, "You cant now, we have to go."_

_The girl shadow looked at her twin, "Already?"_

_The boy shadow nodded, "Cant you feel it? He's coming back and we cant let him know that we're here." _

"_No, I suppose you're right," The girl gazed around her before adding, "We should find some place to hide again."_

"_You should find somewhere to hide too," the boy advised, "You don't want to get caught here." _

"_Caught? By who?" She glanced around her, "Why do I need to hide?"_

"_We cant tell you that!" The two twins turned their backs on her and joined hands, before skipping away from her once again, _

"_Hey wait!" She called after them._

_The twins paused and looked over their shoulders at her, the boy gave her a little wave before shouting, "Will you play with us next time then?"_

"_Yeah! The girl called back, "Will you play with us next time?"_

_She stared back at the twin shadows a little dumbfounded. Just what was going on here?_

"_Play with us Nanao-chan!" They both chorused before completely disappearing from her sight._

_Nanao stared at the empty space the shadow twins had been been occupying, before sweeping her eyes over her surroundings. She felt an odd sense of loneliness creep over her and she couldn't help but shiver. This truly was a dark, lonely and barren place, she'd never known any place like it before. And what were children doing here of all places? Who were they and how did they get here?_

_After rotating slowly on the spot several times and seeing nothing, she decided to start walking. It didn't seem to matter which direction she went, so she began by placing one foot in front of the other. _

_It was hard to tell how far she'd gone but she came to an abrupt halt when she could feel someone's gaze burning into the back of her head. Goosebumps erupted on the back of her neck and travelled down the full length of her back. She felt frozen in place and she could distinctly feel several beads of cold sweat trailing their way down the side of her face and her spine._

_She swallowed down the lump in her throat then pivoted on her heel to face whoever was lurking behind her._

_Before she could react, a large shadowy hand shot out from the darkness and latched firmly onto her wrist. She managed to stifle the scream that wanted to escape her lips and instead it came out more like a strangled yelp. She squinted her eyes and through the gloom she could make out a large, bulky, shadowy demon standing before her._

_The shadowy demon turned and began dragging her away, walking towards a considerably black portion of this already dark place._

_She dug her heels in, trying to prevent the shadowy being from dragging her any further towards the looming darkness before her._

"_Let go of me!" She demanded, allowing her spiritual pressure to swirl angrily around her. She quickly produced a red ball of kido aiming it at her shadowy captor._

_The shadowy demon batted the kido spell to one side with a casual flick of its wrist and laughed loudly, while carrying on with its relentless pace._

_Nanao began to struggle even more, knowing deep down that she could not allow this demon to drag her further into the darkness. If it did, she knew deep down that she would be lost._

"Nanao-chan!" Shunsui's voice sounded so far away and a little bit distressed.

"_SHUNSUI!" She shouted back, glad to hear at least one familiar voice in this lonely place. Where was he though? She craned her neck in all directions trying to catch a glimpse of Shunsui, sure that he was here somewhere. She gritted her teeth and began redoubling her efforts to get away from this strange shadowy demon. The demon merely grinned back at her in amusement._

"_Let go of me!" She demanded for the second time. _

_In response the demon tightened its grip around her wrist and dragged her more forcibly away with it. Nanao felt her feet lift up off the ground as the demon yanked on her wrist._

_Fear and panic began to coil tightly in her chest and stomach, as she desperately tried to prise her arm free from the demons unyielding grip._

"Nanao-chan!" She felt an odd jolt run through her body, "Wake up damn it!"

_She stared back at the shadowy demon. Wake up? Was she dreaming?_

"Nanao!"

_The demon stopped and turned back to face her. With one sharp pull Nanao stumbled forwards and the demon grabbed her by the throat with its spare hand. It hoisted her up so her feet were dangling several metres off the ground. Her wrist was free from the demons hold and she automatically began trying to prise the demons hand away from her throat without much success._

_The demon chuckled and pulled her closer so their faces were only an inch apart and in a soft, low voice which Nanao was shocked to hear was very feminine, it said, "I'm curious to see how much longer you can go before you completely break," it began with a sneer, "The moment you fall asleep again, I'll be back for you."_

"NANAO CHAN!" She noted that Shunsui was sounding rather desperate now.

_Her vision was blurry and black spots were blooming in her eyes, which were streaming with tears. She couldn't be sure whether it was because of fear or if it was the lack of air to her lungs. The demon stared at her for a few more seconds then with one quick strong movement, it shoved her away and launched her through the air._

_Nanao expected to hit the ground any second, knowing the impact would be painful, however no such thing happened. Instead she sunk through the ground and began to free fall. She tried to twist herself over onto her stomach. Her hands brushed against the sides of the hole she was apparently falling down. She tried anything just to slow herself down but nothing was successful. The only change around her was the rush of air in her ears and the increasing darkness. She opened her mouth to scream but no sound would come out._

* * *

><p>"Tilt your head back and close your eyes Kotaro," Ukitake instructed as he reached up to pull the shower head free from the wall.<p>

Kotaro complied and Ukitake turned the water on, spraying it over his hand for the right temperature, "Okay here we go."

He placed one hand gently on Kotaro's forehead to prevent any water from streaming into his eyes, he brought the shower head up with his other hand and began to wet Kotaro's hair through with the spray.

"Here, hold this for a second Kotaro," Ukitake asked while handing him the shower head. He reached over to the shelf and pulled down his bottle of shampoo. He flipped the lid and poured a tiny amount onto the palm of his hand, then returned the bottle to the shelf. He dampened his other hand then rubbed both of his palms together to lather up the shampoo, before placing them both on Kotaro's head and gently massaging it into his hair, "Once I've done your hair you can have a splash around if you want."

Ukitake was waiting for the outburst of excitement that Kotaro would usually display whenever the word splash was mentioned in the bathroom, however the lack of response was slightly puzzling for him.

"Kotaro, did you hear me? I said you can have a splash around once your hair is done," he tried again.

"I don't feel like it Grandad," Kotaro answered quietly.

Ukitake paused and peered at Kotaro's face, "What's wrong Kotaro? Are you feeling okay?"

Kotaro pressed his lips tightly together and shook his head, "Can I get out Grandad? I've got a headache."

"Oh I see," Ukitake felt concerned, "Here let me rinse your hair off first."

Kotaro nodded and tipped his head back and closed his eyes again.

"I suppose it has been a long day for you today," Ukitake retrieved the shower head from Kotaro and just like before, he placed a gentle hand on Kotaro's forehead. He had to admit Kotaro's forehead did feel a bit warm to the touch and peering at his face his cheeks seemed a little flushed too. "Kotaro how long ago did your headache start?" Ukitake asked as he rinsed the soapy suds from Kotaro's hair.

"I don't know, not long."

Ukitake frowned, he knew from extensive experience how quickly a fever could take a hold of you, "There we go, all done Kotaro," Ukitake reached up and switched the water off then replaced the shower head back on the wall.

He then dipped his hand in the water and pulled the plug out. Kotaro lifted his arms up and Ukitake lifted him out of the bath by his armpits. He placed Kotaro down gently on the floor then walked over to a small cupboard where he kept the towels.

"Grandadddd," Stuttered Kotaro. Ukitake glanced over to see him clutching his arms tightly around his small body shivering, "Itttsss coldddd," he said through chattering teeth.

Ukitake hurried back over to him and placed the large towel over his head and wrapped the rest of it around Kotaro's body, Ukitake then scooped him up and carried him out of the bathroom and back down the hallway to the room where Toushiro was sat sipping on a cup of tea.

Toushiro looked up as they entered the room, "Is my little noodle head all clean and ready for bed now?"

"I'm not a noodle Daddy," Came Kotaro's muffled reply from under the towel.

Ukitake placed Kotaro down on the floor, "I'll be right back with your pyjamas Kotaro."

As Ukitake left the room, Kotaro padded across the room to Toushiro, "Daddy can I have a cuddle?"

"Of course little man," Toushiro guided Kotaro onto his lap, as Kotaro sat down the towel slipped further over his eyes.

"Daddy I cant see," Kotaro squirmed around on his lap frustrated.

"Stop squirming around and give me two seconds," Toushiro adjusted Kotaro so he was sitting more securely, he then pulled the towel away from his face and began rubbing at Kotaro's hair to dry it off. As Toushiro tended to his sons hair, Kotaro sat on his lap shivering in silence, while occasionally yawning.

"There all done Kotaro," Toushiro pulled the towel away from his head and draped it around Kotaro's shoulders, he then pulled him closer into a cuddle while he ran his hand up and down Kotaro's back for warmth, "I think we'll get your pyjamas on then get you all tucked up and warm in bed."

"Daddy."

"Yes Kotaro?" As Toushiro sat cuddling Kotaro on his lap, he became aware of two separate spiritual pressures flaring and spiking on the edge of his awareness taking place somewhere across the Seireitei. He drew in his awareness and filtered it out, the last thing he wanted was to feel somebody else having a dispute. Instead he wrapped his presense around Kotaro in a comforting gesture.

"I don't feel so well."

Toushiro glanced at Kotaro's face which did seem a little pale and his cheeks were a little bit flushed, "Is it because you're tired little man?"

"Yeah, but I have an headache and I feel cold," Kotaro lifted a hand and rested it against his chest, "And my chest hurts too."

"You're probably coming down with a cold," Toushiro planted a soft kiss on Kotaro's forehead, "Don't worry little man, I'll look after you."

Kotaro sniffed and Toushiro saw tears begin to fall from his eyes, "I miss Mummy."

Toushiro hugged him, "I know Kotaro. I miss her too."

"TOUSHIRO!" Ukitake called as he hurried into the room clutching Kotaro's pyjamas in one hand and Yori in the other.

Toushiro jumped slightly at the sudden intrusion of noise, "What's wrong Ukitake?"

"Cant you feel that pressure?" Ukitake asked looking a little worked up.

"Yes I felt it, but I tuned it out," Toushiro saw the uneasy expression on Ukitake's face and frowned. He then extended his awareness out and quickly came across the two pressures again. His eyes went wide, "Wait that feels like.."

"Shunsui and Nanao," Ukitake confirmed.

"Feels like they're having a dispute. Why though?" Toushiro asked a little curious. Sure Shunsui was well known for winding Nanao up and yes she would often throw a book at his face, but for them to actually lose control over their pressures like that.

"Toushiro, I think I should get over there. While you and Rangiku have been away, things have been a little odd between the two of them."

"Odd? How?" Toushiro asked quirking an eyebrow.

"I'll fill you in when I return okay?"

"Sure," Toushiro nodded, "I'm going to put Kotaro to bed, he's not feeling so well," Toushiro rose to his feet and crossed over to the door.

As he passed by Ukitake, the older Captain clapped him on the shoulder, "I'm sorry about this Toushiro."

"No don't be, its okay," he adjusted Kotaro and retrieved Yori and the pyjamas from Ukitake, "It must be something serious, because its not like either one of them to pick a fight with the other. Right?"

"Right," Ukitake for once had a very serious expression on his face, "I'll be back soon Toushiro." With that said, Ukitake turned on his heel and swept away down the hallway.

"Daddy what's happening?" Kotaro asked, "Where's Grandad going?"

"Don't worry little man, lets get you to bed now," Toushiro began making his way to Ukitake's guest room, "You still haven't told me what you got up to while I've been away. So instead of me telling you a bedtime story, maybe you can tell me what you did?"

"Okay," Kotaro agreed quietly, "Daddy.."

"Yes Kotaro?"

"When will I be able to see Mummy?"

"I don't know little man. I suppose when she is feeling better again," Toushiro saw a sad expression settle over Kotaro's face, "I'll check how she's doing with Unohana first thing in the morning all right?"

Kotaro perked up a little at hearing that and nodded, "And if Gran-Gran says its okay, then can I see Mummy?"

"Yes Kotaro, you can," Toushiro placed Kotaro down on the futon, "Now lets get you dressed and into bed." Toushiro chuckled to himself, Kotaro was a sweet kid but he certainly had a stubborn side to him too. It was hard to tell whether it was inherited from him or Rangiku, but it was certainly there.

Ten minutes later, Kotaro was settled into his futon and Toushiro was lounging sleepily on the other futon next to him, "And then the jelly beans exploded everywhere Daddy!"

"Wow that's amazing, how did he manage to smuggle all of them into your crayon box like that?"

"I don't know Daddy, but Auntie Nan-nan let me have a few anyway."

Toushiro yawned loudly and stretched his good arm out above it head, "Sounds like you've had a lot of fun little man," he closed his eyes to and allowed his arm to fall back onto the futon.

When he felt a small weight pressing on his stomach he snapped his eyes open to find Kotaro's face hovering a few inches away from his own, "Kotaro?"

"Daddy fell asleep," Kotaro whispered in a soft voice, "Is Daddy tired too?"

"I guess I am little man," Toushiro watched in amusement as Kotaro shuffled around on his futon to find a comfy spot. Once Kotaro was settled down and snuggled up against his side, he allowed his eyes to close again.

"Daddy.."

"Hmm?" Toushiro mumbled sleepily.

"Can you remember when I was dreaming about those monsters?" Kotaro asked reluctantly, "And you told me to tell you if I started having them again?"

"Hmm."

"Well the orange one keeps talking to me now."

"..."

"Daddy?" Kotaro frowned peering into Toushiro's face, "Did you fall asleep Daddy?"

A soft snore escaped from Toushiro's mouth and Kotaro pouted, "Oi! Its suppose to be my bedtime, not yours!"

Toushiro shifted on the futon and wrapped his good arm around Kotaro pulling him closer, "Its too early little man, go back to sleep for a bit," Toushiro mumbled before drifting off back to sleep. Kotaro snuggled into Toushiro's side and he too fell asleep within seconds.


	15. Chapter 15

Hiya guys, I'm sorry there's been quite a wait for this chapter. I must have wrote five different versions for the ShunxNan part, and a further three different versions for Ukitake. Luckily for you though, the Toshi and Kotaro part came easily and voila an update :D Thank you very much to everybody who left a review. I hope you wont all be mad at me after reading this chapter D:

* * *

><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 15<p>

"Nanao-chan wake up! Its just a dream," Shunsui batted Nanao's flailing hand away from his face. He could feel a trickle of blood dripping from his right nostril from where she'd managed to hit him in his face already. He knew there were no malicious intentions behind it, Nanao was just simply having a nightmare.

He'd been returning to his quarters when he'd noticed that the light was still on in his and Nanao's shared office and so he'd decided to drop in to convince Nanao to call it a day. He'd been surprised to find her draped over her desk, fast asleep with a writing brush still clutched in her hand. It was only when he went to scoop her up into his arms that he'd noticed she was mumbling in her sleep clearly having a bad dream.

As he'd held her in his arms she'd begun to wiggle and squirm, as her mumbling quickly turned into cries of distress he'd had no choice but to lower her off her chair to the floor and attempt to wake her up.

All he could do was hover above her body and watch as she grew more and more agitated. Her arms had begun to flail wildly and that was how she'd caught him in his nose.

"Come on Nanao-chan, wake up," He called softly, catching the hand that came a little too close to his face again. He gently pushed it away and pinned it above her head against the floor.

He watched as Nanao's body began to struggle and thrash around. Suddenly her reiatsu flared and her free hand came up, palm facing towards him. He only had a second to dodge to one side as a fiery red Shakkaho formed in her palm and shot towards him. It sailed past his head, missing him by an inch and went blasting through the office wall behind him.

"Let go of me!" Nanao cried loudly as she continued to thrash around.

Shunsui grabbed her other hand and like the first he pinned it above her head and against the floor. Nanao growled loudly at being restrained and her back arched off the floor. She then unexpectedly kicked out at him, her heel connecting with his upper thigh.

"LET GO OF ME!" She cried out, agitation giving way to distress.

"Easy Nanao-chan, I'm not the one trying to hurt you," Shunsui shifted his weight to one knee and with his other leg he trapped Nanao's struggling limb, pinning her leg to the floor. He did the same to her other leg and now he had her completely restrained. Now she couldn't hurt herself, or him.

"Nanao-chan!" Shunsui gave her body one sharp nudge, "Wake up damn it!"

Nanao screamed loudly and her flaring pressure spiked uncontrollably and Shunsui caught a hint of that dark heavy pressure from before, making Nanao's own reiatsu appear raw and unstable. Looking at her face he could see fear etched into her face and tears in her eyes.

He knew that her screams would've probably woken up the entire division. He also knew that her flaring reiatsu would've probably woken up the entire Seireitei. Which in turn would draw everyone's attention to the fact that Nanao was unstable and possibly dangerous. It would only be a matter of time before they made the connection between her condition and his injuries, which would see her locked away in a cell somewhere. He couldn't let that happen, he needed to draw the attention away from her. He only had one option in this situation.

"Nanao," He lowered his head and brushed his lips against her cheek, "Forgive me sweetheart, this will be uncomfortable."

Shunsui gradually allowed the tight hold on his reiatsu to lift. As his pressure began to rise and fill the room, several pieces of paperwork began fluttering about the room, while the windows began to rattle in their frames.

All he needed to do was release enough reiatsu to completely drown out and mask Nanao's unstable energy. It appeared to be working at first, however Nanao began to struggle even more beneath him and he soon realised that the dark presense wouldn't allow him to suppress it so easily. He could feel it slowly creeping over Nanao and prickling at his presense.

Shunsui increased his pressure output by a fraction to compensate and Nanao let out an ear piercing scream and began thrashing wildly beneath him. He tightened his grip on Nanao's wrists and adjusted his body so his weight was pressing down heavily on her, keeping her in place.

Nanao's screams were relentless. He couldn't even venture a guess at what horror she must be witnessing within her dream.

Unfortunately it seemed that the dark presense disliked his close proximity and reacted by flaring up and pushing back against his own pressure. In response Shunsui was forced to release more of his own pressure to counteract the sudden rise in the dark reiatsu.

The windows blew out with a shattering crash and Shunsui could hear several shouts and cries coming from outside by his division members. Although the amount of pressure he'd released so far may seem quite a lot to them, in actuality it was only a small percentage of his vast store of power.

It seemed that the dark presense couldn't match his current output of energy. He could feel it beginning to fluctuate and weaken. Nanao's own pressure seemed to be trying to push it aside too. A small part in the back of his mind, hoped that Nanao was waking up and regaining control over herself.

Seizing the opportunity, Shunsui raised his pressure once again, completely dominating both Nanao's pressure and the strange dark pressure. He engulfed both of them with his immense power in a smothering gesture, like one would trap a fly within their palm.

He felt Nanao's body cease its struggling and go limp beneath him. Glancing down he saw her chest rising and falling rapidly, her lungs were straining for oxygen. He realised with guilt that he must be suffocating her. Fortunately it seemed that the dark presense was quickly withdrawing, it was obvious it couldn't stand up to his power much longer and was choosing to retreat.

Shunsui gave it a few seconds longer before he withdrew and completely clamped down on his pressure once again. He glanced down at Nanao's sweat soaked and tear stained face, along with her heaving chest as she tried to regain her breath.

"Nanao-chan, can you hear me?" He asked cocking his head to one side, he could feel her entire body trembling beneath him. Even though Nanao was waking up and the dark presense had receded for now, he still had her firmly pinned down.

Drifting through the broken windows Shunsui could hear several voices talking all at once, asking a variety of questions, "Is the Lieutenant all right?" "What's happening in there?" "Are they fighting in there?" "Should we go inside and check?"

Which were followed by a variety of answers, " I cant feel Lieutenant Ise's pressure," "It certainly feels like they were fighting," "But Captain wouldn't lay a finger on anyone, least of all the Lieutenant," "No way am I going in there."

Shunsui sighed heavily, he wanted to avoid attracting anyone's attention, "Come on Nanao-chan, wake up for me."

Nanao began to stir much to Shunsui's relief, but before he could say or do anything he heard a swish of shunpo from behind him and the next thing he knew, he was being wrenched off and away from Nanao by a strong arm around his middle.

He instinctively rammed his elbow into the person who dared to restrain him and was satisfied when he heard a distinctive grunt. The arm fell away from his middle and he crossed back over towards Nanao, however after only a couple of steps two arms grabbed him from behind again, trapping both of his arms by his sides.

"If you know what's best for you," Shunsui raised his pressure threateningly, "Then you'd better get your hands off me."

"Not until you tell me just what the hell is going on Shunsui."

"Nothing is going on here Juu," Shunsui shot back hotly, his eyes seeking out Nanao who was still sprawled on the floor groaning.

"Something clearly is going on here Shunsui," Ukitake yelled back, he could feel his feet sliding on the floor as Shunsui tried to reach Nanao, "Have you two been fighting?"

Shunsui chose to ignore Ukitake, instead he allowed his gaze to fall on Nanao and he clenched his jaw tightly.

Ukitake glanced between Shunsui who still wore the bruises from his recent injuries, plus a bleeding nose, then over to Nanao. He remembered all to well the bruises that were adorning Nanao earlier that morning, "Did you hurt Nanao?"

Shunsui reached his hands up and gripped Ukitake's wrists, trying to prise his friends hands away from him, "I cant believe you of all people would ask me that," he growled through gritted teeth.

"Just answer the question Shunsui," Ukitake demanded, while tightening his grip around Shunsui, "Did you hurt Nanao?"

"Of course I didn't hurt Nanao-chan. Why would you even think that Juu?" Shunsui roared back losing his temper.

"Then why were you fighting?" Ukitake shot back.

"We weren't fighting!" Shunsui managed to dislodge Ukitake's hold and he stepped away from him.

"Well it sure felt like it Shunsui," Ukitake yelled back angrily, "It also felt like you were forcing yourself on Nanao."

The anger rose in Shunsui like a volcano, his blood boiling in rage. He spun around and grabbed the front of Ukitake's robes in one hand while raising the other in a fist, "How dare you accuse me of something like that!"

"SHUNSUI!" Ukitake yelled back grabbing the front of Shunsui's robes and raising his fist too, "I'm not accusing you of anything. I'm just commenting on what it felt like."

"Yeah well its not what you think Juu," Shunsui shot back.

"Then tell me what it is Shunsui," Ukitake lowered his fist and released his hold on Shunsui's robes, "Because to be honest, If anyone else had stopped by to see what the hell was going on, only to find you pinning Nanao down like that. It would be a hell of a lot harder to convince them that you weren't trying to ra-"

Shunsui's fist connected with Ukitake's face cutting off the rest of his sentence. If it wasn't for the tight grip he still had on Ukitake's robes, his friend would've been stumbling back for certain.

Once the stars cleared from Ukitake's eyes he refocused on Shunsui face and wasn't all that surprised when he saw the dark look in his eyes. He knew his friend better then anyone else did, and while Shunsui generally portrayed himself as being friendly, teasing and laid back, he knew there to be a dark side to him, which he'd only seen a handful of times and usually those times were during particularly vicious battles.

"Juu," Shunsui stared back at Ukitake, he took in a large deep breath and released it slowly. In a much calmer voice he said, "Do you really think I'm capable of such a thing? Especially towards my Nanao-chan?"

"No Shunsui," Ukitake lifted up his hand and wiped the back of it across his bleeding nose, "And I wasn't accusing you of that either damn it, I know you wouldn't do such a thing. However to somebody else, they may have jumped to that conclusion."

"Just forget it for now," Shunsui released him and turned on his heel to look at Nanao.

Shunsui walked over to Nanao and knelt down by her side. He pulled her into his arms cradling her, "Nanao-chan, sweetheart can you hear me?"

"Shunsui," Ukitake went over to them and crouched down on the floor, "If you two weren't fighting then-"

"Nanao was having a nightmare," he replied in a low voice.

"Oh I see," Ukitake's eyebrows knitted together, "Must've been some nightmare."

A loud gasp came from Shunsui's arms and Nanao's eyes snapped open, she tried to claw her way free from his arms clearly disorientated.

"Easy Nanao-chan," Shunsui placed his hand against her face, stroking his thumb over her cheek, "Its okay," with his other arm he pulled her closer to his chest.

Nanao however placed both her hands against his chest and tried to push him away.

"Nanao-chan?" Shunsui questioned a little confused.

"I need space.. I cant breathe," Nanao gasped out.

Shunsui released his hold on her and she stumbled out of his lap, "Are you okay?"

Nanao shuffled away from them till her back came to rest against the wall. She brought her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, she was panting heavily and her face seemed drained of colour.

"Take some slow deep breaths Nanao," Ukitake advised as he got to his feet.

Shunsui watched as Nanao took a few shaky breaths, he could still see her whole body trembling. He wanted nothing more then to hold her in his arms and comfort her, but clearly she needed her space for the moment. Instead he settled for moving a little closer and extending his hand out and gently resting it against her cheek, "Nanao-chan, are you feeling all right?"

Nanao brought her hand up and rested it against Shunsui's, her fingers intertwining with his, "I'm fine," she replied quietly.

"Are you sure?" Shunsui wasn't convinced, "You're looking kinda pale."

Nanao pulled Shunsui's hand away from her face, "I said I'm fine Shunsui," she dropped his hand and rose to her feet. As Nanao straightened up she was hit by a head rush, her vision went fuzzy and she could feel herself swaying to one side. She went to throw an arm out to stop herself from falling, however two pairs of arms were already holding her steady.

"Nanao, I have to agree with Shunsui," Ukitake dropped his supporting arm from Nanao's waist, "You really don't look well. Maybe we should stop by the Fourth and have you checked over," Ukitake suggested.

Shunsui could feel Nanao leaning heavily against him, he wrapped both of his arms around her waist and pulled her back into his chest and rested his chin on top of her head, he had to admit he felt a little uneasy about taking Nanao to the Fourth.

Shunsui took in a deep breath and let it out as a long sigh, "I'm taking you to the Fourth Nanao-chan," he had his doubts, but he reminded himself that if he'd been a bit firmer with her before about going to the Fourth, then just maybe she wouldn't be having these issues now.

Nanao tilted her head to look up at him, it was the first time she'd looked him in the eye since she'd been awake. Her indigo eyes met Shunsui's warm greys and she could see the worry and concern reflected in them.

"I don't have a choice in the matter do I?" She asked as she looked away.

"No," Shunsui and Ukitake chorused together.

Shunsui felt Nanao pull on his arms wanting him to release his hold on her, which he did reluctantly, "Nanao-chan, don't you want me to carry you to the Fourth?" He asked lightly trying to hide just how much the whole situation bothered him.

"I think I'll manage just fine," Nanao turned on her heel and started crossing over to the door a little unsteady.

Shunsui shared a quick look with Ukitake, he could tell by his expression that Ukitake wanted to know exactly what'd been happening between him and Nanao.

Shunsui raised his eyebrows and tilted his head to one side, '_Later.' _

_'Decided to stop avoiding me?' _Ukitake questioned silently.

Their silent conversation was interrupted when out of the corner of their eyes they saw Nanao's knees give way beneath her, causing her to crumple to the floor with a thump, "Nanao!" Shunsui called rushing over to her. He scooped her up into his arms and brushed her hair back out of her face, "Juu I think she fainted."

"We need to get her to the Fourth quickly Shunsui."

Shunsui couldn't agree more, he stumbled to his feet and readjusted his grip on Nanao, "Lets go."

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><p>The sound of distant coughing filtered through the layers of his foggy brain, along with a loud roaring in the back of his mind. It made him wince, it was tempting to shut out the intrusion of noise but something about the two sounds seemed to require his immediate attention.<p>

As he forced himself to wake up the roaring grew louder and he soon distinguished the voice of Hyourimaru, 'Wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!

'Hyourimaru? What is it?'

''Master you must wake up now!'

'ALL RIGHT!'

Toushiro blinked his eyes open and sat up on his borrowed futon, he frowned when he realised Kotaro was no longer snuggled up to his side.

"Kotaro?" He called as he glanced about the room, he thought at first that Kotaro had climbed back into his own futon but a quick glance showed it was empty.

The bedroom door had been left open halfway and he thought he could hear someone moving around down the hallway along with several coughs. He figured it was Ukitake and that Kotaro must have gone to him when he'd woken up.

Toushiro shrugged his burnt arm out of the sling that'd become all tangled up in his sleep and tossed it to one side. He got to his feet and stepped out into the hallway, "Kotaro... Ukitake?"

He received no reply so he made his way down the hallway. As he approached Ukitake's kitchen he noticed that the door had been left open. Stepping inside the first thing he noticed was Kotaro's stuffed dragon lying discarded on the floor and the second thing was a broken glass lying by the side of the sink.

Toushiro bent down and plucked Yori off the floor. He didn't have time to ponder how it'd ended up there of all places because a fresh bout of coughs reached his ears and he knew they didn't belong to Ukitake.

"Kotaro!" He yelled.

'Master, he's in the bathroom,' Hyourimaru kindly pointed out.

'Thanks.'

He hurried to the bathroom and wasn't surprised to see the door half open. Stepping inside he found his son standing on his tip-toes trying to reach the bathroom sink. In one hand he was holding a beaker and trying to reach the tap, while the other was holding onto the sink, "Kotaro," he stepped over to him, "What are you trying to do little man?"

"I need a drink Daddy," Kotaro's voice came out quiet and croaky. Just saying those five words set off another coughing fit.

"Come here," Toushiro took the beaker from his hands and guided Kotaro to sit down on the floor. He then filled the beaker with cold water and sat down on the floor too, crossing his legs in front of him.

Kotaro scrambled into his lap and Toushiro lowered the beaker to his lips. Kotaro slurped greedily at the cool liquid and he soon drained the beaker. Toushiro reached up and refilled it then gave the beaker back to Kotaro, "Sip it slowly little man."

Toushiro wrapped an arm around Kotaro's middle and with his other hand he rested it across Kotaro's forehead, "Kotaro, you're burning up. You feel much hotter then earlier."

"I don't feel very well," he croaked out quietly.

Toushiro removed his hand from Kotaro's forehead and reached for his hand instead, it felt ice cold. He then did the same to Kotaro's foot and like his hand it was freezing cold. Kotaro trembled in his arms, all he was wearing were his usual green pyjamas.

Toushiro frowned, he had the horrible feeling that Kotaro's illness was much more then a simple cold. Kotaro began coughing again and he was sure it sounded quite wet. By the time the fit had passed Toushiro sat and listened to Kotaro's breathing and he felt quite alarmed when he could hear him wheezing. Was it a chest infection or something?

Toushiro picked up Yori and handed him to Kotaro, "I'll be right back little man."

"Daddy," Kotaro called out in a high scratchy voice.

Toushiro paused, he could see Kotaro's bottom lip wobbling and tears were building up in his eyes, "Yes Kotaro?"

"I want Mummy," The tears in Kotaro's eyes finally spilled over and a sob caught in his throat, which unfortunately set off another harsh coughing fit.

"It will be okay little man," he soothed. Toushiro scooped Kotaro and Yori up into his arms and he dashed back down the hallway to the guest room. He placed Kotaro down on the futon and rummaged inside the bag Rangiku had used for Kotaro's belongings.

He pulled out a pair of socks and some slippers along with a thick night robe and put them on Kotaro. He then grabbed Kotaro's blanket off his futon and wrapped it around his tiny body, "Does that feel a bit warmer?"

Kotaro nodded and swayed a little. Toushiro placed his hands on Kotaro's sides to steady him, "Tell me how you feel little man."

"I feel funny," He whispered quietly, "The room keeps moving."

Toushiro felt very worried. Sure Kotaro had been ill quite a few times before, but he'd never been as severe as he seemed to be now. Whenever he'd gotten sick before it was never anything that a cuddle from Rangiku couldn't fix.

Without warning another coughing fit started and for a heart stopping second Toushiro thought Kotaro was choking. He pulled his son closer and rubbed at his back. By the time the coughs had subsided Kotaro seemed to be having difficulty breathing. Toushiro pulled away from him to look at his face, "Slow steady breaths little man."

Kotaro did as instructed but within seconds he was hacking away again. Toushiro knew his son was feeling scared. Hell even he felt a little scared for him too. When Kotaro finally stopped coughing again, he lifted his head up to look at Toushiro.

Toushiro's eyes went wide in shock. Dribbling out the corner of Kotaro's mouth was a thin stream of blood, slowly running its way down his chin, "Kotaro!"

"Daddy..." he said weakly.

Toushiro jumped into action. He scooped Kotaro and Yori into his arms again and began heading down the Hallway to Ukitake's front door. He yanked it open and stepped out into the night, setting off for the Fourth Division in a flash of shunpo.


	16. Chapter 16

Hello my loyal readers, thank you for all your reviews. I realised that the last chapter was kind of a double cliff hanger _ So apologies for that. I did'nt want to leave you waiting too long for this chapter so once I figured out the who/what and where to pick it up, (There were seven different possibilities... Yes that's right seven, its no joke!) I hope you enjoy and I'm really interested in all your theories as to where you think this story is going. The few people who have ventured a guess I can say that your not even warm, despite a huge amount of clues scattered about in previous chapters =)

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 16<p>

It was a peaceful night in the Fourth divisions infirmary. The semi-lit hallways and corridors were quiet and deserted. Patients were sleeping restfully in their beds, the medical staff who were running the night shift were busy carrying out their various tasks and Isane was dutifully checking over Nanao in one of the treatment rooms.

Unfortunately the calm tranquil atmosphere that'd enveloped the rest of the Fourth division, didn't extend to the corridor running outside the treatment rooms where two raised voices were having a heated discussion.

"I said I'm not talking about it right now."

"You said later," Ukitake replied exasperated, "Believe it or not.. this is later!"

"Yes I said later Juu, and I meant later later," Shunsui replied irritation evident in his voice, "Not later as in right now."

"I see how it is," Ukitake's tone was full of indignation, "There you go once again avoiding the subject."

"Well if you didn't keep going on about it every god damn second, then just maybe it wouldn't seem like I'm avoiding the subject so much," Shunsui got to his feet and walked a few steps away from Ukitake.

Ukitake was on his feet in seconds, "So now you're admitting that you ARE avoiding the subject then."

"No you idiot," Shunsui spun on his heel and glared at Ukitake, "I'm saying that you're the one who wont let it go. You're like a dog with a bone, just drop it already," Shunsui dabbed angrily at his nose with a tissue, which had begun to bleed again, "I am not avoiding anything Juu, now just isn't the time or place to discuss the matter."

"I don't get you at all lately Shunsui," Ukitake's nose, just like Shunsui's was bleeding heavily, "First you come to me for some advice because you were concerned about Nanao," He pulled one of his hankies out of his pocket to stem the bleeding, "Then you ask for my help when it was as clear as day you'd been badly beaten up. Yet even now you refuse to admit it."

Shunsui's eyes widened briefly before flickering to the door that Nanao and Isane were behind, "Will you keep it down damn it."

"I understand that you didn't want to talk about it back then, and I respected that," Ukitake sighed heavily, "But what I don't understand is why you suddenly decided to start avoiding me. Its like your ashamed to tell me what happened."

"The reason I didn't want to talk about it, is because you probably wouldn't understand anyway," Shunsui turned his back on Ukitake.

"Shunsui! We're best friends. How could I not understand? Nothing you do or say shocks me any more, not after all these years of knowing you."

"You wouldn't be saying that if you knew what'd happened Juu."

"I'm sure its not that bad Shunsui," Ukitake stepped forward to rest a hand on Shunsui's shoulder, but before he reached him Shunsui had turned back around and instead he dropped his hand back down, "I can only assume that whatever happened, it has something to do with Nanao."

"Leave Nanao-chan out of this Juu, this has nothing to do with her."

"How can you say that Shunsui," Ukitake shot back incredulous, "I saw Nanao's bruises, this has everything to do with her."

Shunsui froze and Ukitake was certain he was going to have an angry outburst, however the sound of footsteps walking quickly in their direction seemed to have put a temporary stop to their verbal sparring match. Ukitake glanced over his shoulder and was surprised to see Unohana gliding down the corridor towards them gently clutching a hell butterfly between her fingers.

A warm smile found its way onto Ukitake's face, "Retsu dear what are you doing here? I thought you were off duty tonight?"

"When I heard a disturbance taking place in my infirmary I naturally assumed it would be a couple of squad elevens members causing trouble. So imagine my surprise when it turns out to be two of the most senior Captains in the Seireitei, quarrelling like a couple of teenagers, who really should know better then to be disturbing the peace and quiet in my infirmary," Unohana's calm smile never slipped from her face, however her eyes told a different story and their argument came to an abrupt end.

"We're sorry Retsu dear," Ukitake replied apologetically, "We didn't mean to drag you away from whatever it is you were doing."

"Its thoughtful for you to apologise Juushiro, however that's not why I'm here," Unohana paused outside an empty treatment room, situated next door to where Nanao was being seen to, "I've just received word of an incoming emergency."

Unohana pushed open the door and flicked on the lights, she then turned back to face Ukitake and Shunsui. She glanced between the two of them and had to refrain from frowning, "Have you two been fighting?"

"Yes," Ukitake replied once again dabbing at his nose with his hanky, while Shunsui replied flatly with "No."

Ukitake glanced at Shunsui then pointed at his own nose, "You punched me in the nose Shunsui."

"You deserved it," Shunsui tossed back, his temper flaring back up.

"Enough," Unohana said deciding to step in before things got out of hand, "What are you two doing here anyway?"

Instead of answering, Ukitake decided to bite his lip and see how Shunsui would answer that question. However just as it seemed that Shunsui was about to supply an answer the door where Nanao was being seen to, opened and Isane emerged into the corridor.

Seeing Isane standing there Shunsui turned in her direction and took a step forward, "Hows Nanao-chan? Is she all right?"

Isane glanced briefly at the clipboard she held in her hand, "She's regained consciousness Captain Kyouraku, however she is showing all the classic signs of stress and exhaustion, along with the combination of high blood pressure, low spiritual pressure and insufficient nutrition."

"Would all of those factors contribute to her collapsing like that?" The concern Shunsui felt was evident in each word that he spoke.

"Yes Captain Kyouraku, its quite a common occurrence in people who find themselves repeatedly in a stressful situation. Whether its a physically, mentally or emotionally stressful situation, it all adds up and in the end it takes its toll on the body."

Shunsui was quiet for several minutes before he asked, "Can I see her?"

Isane glanced over to Unohana who gave her a tiny nod, "Of course Captain Kyouraku, she's been asking for you." Isane stepped to one side and Shunsui brushed past her, disappearing into the treatment room without a backward glance.

"Isane, once you have finished seeing to Nanao, I shall require your assistance. Third seat Iemura sent word of an incoming emergency that should be arriving any time now."

"Yes Captain Unohana," Isane gave a slight bow then retreated back into the treatment room.

Ukitake turned to Unohana once it were just the two of them left in the corridor, "I shall get out of your hair now Retsu, I see that you are busy," he said with his trademark smile in place, "Are we meeting for our usual cup of tea tomorrow?"

Unohana nodded, "Of course Juushiro, it seems we have much to discuss," she answered while glancing at his bloody nose. She lifted a hand and ran her fingers over his nose, "Its not broken," she directed a small amount of healing kido through her fingers, ""Just badly bruised."

"Thank you," He bent down so he could steal a quick kiss, however the sounds of hurried footsteps approaching had him pulling away instead. He glanced down the corridor as a small relief team came bustling around the corner pushing along a small stretcher bed and tending to the patient as they went along.

"It looks like my emergency case is here," Unohana stated calmly.

A flash of white rounding the corner a few seconds later had Ukitake doing a double take, "What's Toushiro doing here?" His eyes travelled back to the stretcher and sure enough there was a white mop of hair belonging to the tiny patient, "Kotaro?"

Ukitake glanced to his side at Unohana, but she'd already been moving towards the approaching team, "What's the situation Iemura?"

Ukitake stepped away from the treatment rooms door and backed up against the opposite wall as the medical team came bustling past him. He caught a quick look at Kotaro before he was wheeled inside the treatment room and lost to his sight. Seconds later Toushiro was by his side, out of breath and panting lightly. Clearly he'd rushed over here from the Thirteenth.

"Toushiro what happened?" Ukitake could feel his stomach knotting with anxiety, he rested his hand against Toushiro's shoulder and could feel the young Captain shaking slightly under his touch, "What's wrong with Kotaro?"

"He..he's taken ill," Toushiro shrugged Ukitake's hand off his shoulder and began pacing up and down the corridor.

"Hmm," Ukitake agreed, "He told me he wasn't feeling so great while I was bathing him earlier."

Toushiro paused in his pacing and pinched the bridge of his nose, letting his eyes slide shut. In the silent corridor, loud coughing could be heard coming from inside the treatment room followed by Unohana calmly issuing orders.

The door opened up and a female nurse stepped out with a few specks of blood dotted about her uniform, "Excuse me Captain Hitsugaya, I need to ask you a few questions if that would be okay Sir."

Toushiro opened his eyes and nodded allowing the nurse to continue.

"Captain Unohana would like to know how long ago your son began coughing up blood, Sir."

"It would have been approximately fifteen to twenty minutes ago," Toushiro replied, he heard Ukitake make some small noise of disbelief from behind him.

The nurse made a quick note on her clipboard before returning her gaze to him, "And do you have a general idea how long ago he started with his fever?"

Toushiro looked away from the nurse and over his shoulder at Ukitake, "You've been looking after him all day Ukitake, did you notice anything?"

Ukitake cleared his throat and stepped forward, "Well.. He's been feeling tired all day, even though he's had sufficient sleep. I guess the first time Kotaro mentioned he was feeling off was during his bath. I noticed then he was feeling a little warm, so maybe three or four hours ago, possibly five?"

"Okay thank you," the nurse nodded and noted it down on her clipboard, "I shall ensure that you are kept updated on his condition Sir," she then turned on her heel to head back into the treatment room.

"Hey wait," Toushiro called, the nurse stopped and turned back to face him, "Could you inform Captain Unohana that if I'm not out here, its because I will be with my wife."

"Yes of course Sir," The nurse gave a small bow before heading back into the room behind her.

"Toushiro did I hear right? Has Kotaro been coughing up blood?" Ukitake asked once the door had closed.

"Yes he has," Toushiro sighed heavily and stepped over to the row of chairs on the opposite wall. He slumped down heavily into one of the seats and rested his elbows on his knees while cradling his head in his hands, "It was only a dribble after he'd been coughing, but I figured I'd best bring him in."

"I know its hard, but try not to worry too much before you know what the diagnosis is Toushiro," Ukitake walked over to the seats and settled himself down next to Toushiro, "Retsu will get to the bottom of it, she's had a lot of experience treating bad chests."

"I guess you're right," Toushiro felt the anxiety ease out of him slightly, "I've just never seen Kotaro as ill as this before. But how he was.." Toushiro hesitated before continuing on, "It was exactly like how one of your attacks would start."

Ukitake was quiet for a long time while he digested Toushiro's words. Surely Kotaro's condition couldn't be the same as his. He'd had this condition since he was a young boy and in all the years he'd been battling with it, never had anyone else been infected with it. Unohana had researched his condition extensively in a bid to find a cure. Although she'd never been successful, she had concluded that the disease was in no way contagious to other people, which at the time had been the only small comfort he'd had. He wouldn't wish his condition on anybody, not even his enemies if he had any.

Ukitake took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He couldn't help but notice how much better his chest felt now, compared to how it felt earlier in his office. He'd even coughed a few specks of blood up, but strangely enough the tightness in his chest had eased. It was painfully ironic to him how earlier he'd felt ill and now he felt fine, yet there was Kotaro who at the time seemed to be feeling okay and now he was the one who was very poorly.

Ukitake suddenly felt very uncomfortable. What if Kotaro had gotten too close to him earlier and he'd in fact infected the little guy. He reminded himself again that he wasn't contagious to other people, but despite telling himself that he couldn't help but feel guilty.

"Hey!" Toushiro's impatient voice interrupted Ukitake's morbid thoughts, "Are you even listening to me Ukitake?"

Ukitake shook off his depressive thoughts and returned his focus back to Toushiro, "I'm sorry Toushiro, what was it you were saying?"

Toushiro sighed, "I said you'd better not be feeling guilty about Kotaro's illness. Did you, or did you not say that its best not to worry until we know what the diagnosis is?"

"So I did," a small smile formed on Ukitake's face.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Toushiro leant back into his seat and closed his eyes. He could feel a deep throb forming behind his temples and he suspected that a migraine was on its way. He was just pondering whether he could get away with having a power nap when the sound of a door opening reached his ears. He peeked his eyes open and saw a flash of pink emerging from the room next to Kotaro's.

Shunsui swept over to the seats and sat himself down on Toushiro's other side. Toushiro glanced at Shunsui's face noticing the deep bruising running down the left side of his face, which he guessed to be a couple of days old. He then noticed Shunsui's red puffy nose and the recently dried blood staining his face. Shunsui sensing Toushiro's gaze glanced at him and gave a quick wink before looking away and glaring at Ukitake. Frowning Toushiro then turned to Ukitake and saw for the first time that he too had a rather sore looking nose and the obvious signs of a recent nosebleed. Ukitake caught his eye and smiled warmly before narrowing his gaze slightly at Shunsui.

Toushiro felt slightly uncomfortable being sandwiched between the the two of them. It was as clear as day that they'd had some sort of a disagreement. He recalled Ukitake mentioning that things were a little bit odd between the Eighth division leaders, however the only thing that seemed odd to Toushiro at the moment was the two of them being uncharacteristically hostile towards the other.

Toushiro glanced back at Ukitake while wondering if he could come up with a plausible reason to excuse himself from their company. Knowing how perceptive the two of them were, it wouldn't surprise him if they already knew how uncomfortable he was feeling.

"If there's something on your mind Toushiro," Ukitake gave him a serious look, "Its best if you voice it. It doesn't do anyone any good to bottle things up," Ukitake looked away from Toushiro and stared pointedly back at Shunsui.

"Kiddo," Toushiro shifted his gaze away from Ukitake to look at Shunsui, who'd pulled a small flask of sake from his pocket and was taking a long sip from it. Once he'd replaced the lid and pocketed the flask he carried on, "If you want to keep what's on your mind bottled up, then that's completely fine. Don't ever let some nosey old git drag it out of you, especially if you don't want to talk about it," Shunsui countered with a glare of his own.

Toushiro sat up a little straighter in his seat, "Look if you are fighting with each other, then please don't involve me in it. I am not taking sides in this," he made to get up out of his seat but Ukitake's hand on his shoulder prevented him from moving any further.

"Don't be silly Toushiro, of course I'm not fighting with Shunsui," Ukitake replied in his usual friendly way. However his next sentence came out a little waspish, "After all I wouldn't dream of punching my best friend in his face."

Shunsui shifted in his seat so he was facing Ukitake, "No of course you wouldn't Juu buddy," although Shunsui's words were friendly, Toushiro could hear the bite behind them, "You'd much rather accuse your best friend of beating up ladies and trying to force himself on them."

Ukitake rose to his feet, "How many times do I have to say it before it sinks in Shunsui... I wasn't accusing you of anything of the sort."

"So you keep saying," Shunsui pulled himself to his feet and glowered at Ukitake, in a much lower voice then before he replied, "But that doesn't change the fact that you implied it Juu, that you would think so little of me."

As Shunsui made to turn away from Ukitake, Isane stepped out into the corridor with a supportive arm around Nanao's waist. Shunsui closed the distance between them and pulled Nanao into a gentle hug, "Is Nanao-chan ready to go home and get some much needed rest now?"

"I'm happy enough to discharge her now Captain Kyouraku," Isane retracted her arm from around Nanao's waist, "However I strongly advise Nanao to take a few days off for rest and relaxation to ensure that her energy levels are sufficiently restored."

"My Nanao-chan can take as long as she likes," Shunsui removed his hands from Nanao's shoulders and cupped her face instead, "Come on, lets get you home sweetheart," he pulled away and draped an arm around her shoulders and began guiding her down the corridor, "Thank you for your help Isane," he called back over his shoulder. It was obvious Shunsui was in a rush to get away from Ukitake.

Isane turned her attention to Ukitake once Shunsui had disappeared around the corner, "Captain Ukitake, do you require any assistance?"

"No I'm okay, thank you Isane," Ukitake replied somewhat distracted.

After Isane had left him to go help Unohana he sighed heavily and slumped back down on the seat. He realised Toushiro was no longer sitting next to him and when he looked up he saw the young Captain making his escape down the corridor, "Hey Toushiro where are you going?" he called after him.

Toushiro paused and turned slowly to him, "I really need to see Rangiku. I know she will probably be sleeping, but still.." he trailed off.

"I understand Toushiro. I'll catch up with you tomorrow" Ukitake watched as Toushiro disappeared down the corridor and out of sight.

Ukitake's mind was reeling from everything that had transpired in the space of a day, both good and bad. Had it only been that morning that he'd walked to the Captains meeting with little Kotaro happily trailing along by his side? Toushiro and Rangiku had returned from their mission and Rukia had accepted his offer of becoming his Lieutenant. Yes some good things had happened, yet it was all the bad things that were currently plaguing his mind.

He was deeply worried about Kotaro's sudden illness, even though he'd just told Toushiro not to worry about it. In the back of his mind though, he couldn't help but feel as if he were some how responsible for Kotaro's condition. It was too much of a coincidence in his opinion.

Then he didn't even know where to begin with the whole mess with Shunsui. He just hoped that this rift that'd seemed to have formed between them was only temporary and that it wouldn't tear their friendship apart.

It was several minutes later when Ukitake realized that he was still standing in the empty corridor all alone. Taking a deep breath and letting it out as a long sigh, he began placing one foot in front of the other, allowing his feet to carry him automatically to where he wanted to go.

* * *

><p>A few hours later Unohana was walking through the many corridors and hallways of the Fourth division, carrying a snoozing Kotaro who was draped over her shoulder. During the steady walk she'd been humming a soothing lullaby while taking care not to jostle her young patient.<p>

As Unohana neared her destination she paused in her walking and craned her neck to peer at Kotaro's peaceful face. She was pleased that his cough had settled down enough so that he could sleep and that his fever seemed to be breaking, however she felt deeply concerned by how identical Kotaro's symptoms were to Ukitake's illness.

It was clear to Unohana that she would have to run several tests on both Kotaro and Ukitake just to determine whether the two conditions were related.

Unohana started walking again and ten steps later she was gently pushing open the door to Rangiku's room. Just as she'd expected, Toushiro was fast asleep in the chair with his head tilted back at an odd angle, snoring loudly.

She was planning on prodding Toushiro awake when a small voice in her ear grabbed her attention instead, "Gran-Gran, where are we?" Kotaro asked sounding a little disorientated.

"Shh, its all right sunshine," Unohana soothed quietly.

"Is that Daddy snoring?" He asked trying to shuffle around in Unohana's arms.

"Yes, he's fast asleep," Unohana angled her her body so Kotaro could see Toushiro, "Lets try not to disturb him okay."

"Okay Gran-Gran," Kotaro replied quietly with his croaky voice.

"How are you feeling now?" Unohana whispered.

"I feel sleepy," he replied resting his head back on Unohana's shoulders.

"It will be the medicine I gave you for your chest, it can make you feel a little drowsy," Unohana brought her hand up to stroke Kotaro's hair, "I'll put you to bed shortly."

"Where am I going to sleep Gran-Gran?"

"Captain Unohana," Rangiku's soft voice called from across the room.

Kotaro perked up slightly when he heard her voice, "Mummy?"

Unohana glided over to Rangiku's bed and perched herself on the edge, "Its nice to see you awake Rangiku, how are you feeling?"

Rangiku's eyes lit up and travelled to Unohana's shoulder, "Kotaro, my little baby."

Kotaro grew restless in Unohana's arms, so she gently placed him on the bed and he promptly crawled closer to Rangiku, "Be careful of your mums side Kotaro," she warned in a gentle tone.

"I've missed you sweetie," Rangiku shifted in the bed so Kotaro could snuggle up to her good side. Once Kotaro had settled down she wrapped an arm around him and pulled him closer kissing the top of his head, "Daddy told me you weren't feeling well."

Kotaro yawn loudly, "Gran-Gran's been looking after me," he croaked.

Unohana smiled and rose to her feet, "Are you in any pain Rangiku?" she asked as she picked up Rangiku's file from the side table.

"My sides hurting, it feels like its burning."

Unohana stepped around the bed to check Rangiku's side, her palm lit up with a green ball of kido and she began to examine the injury. Kotaro watched in fascination as she worked.

"Your injury is healing well Rangiku," Unohana flicked her wrist and the kido faded away, "I'll give you something for the pain so it wont disturb your sleep," She stepped away from the bed and walked across the room to the door, "I'll be back shortly."

"Thanks Captain Unohana," Rangiku replied gratefully, she dropped her gaze and saw Kotaro's teal eyes peering back at her. She smiled at him and planted a kiss on his forehead, "I've really really missed you sweetie."

"I've missed you too Mummy," Kotaro replied through a yawn as he rubbed at his eyes.

"Its okay to go to sleep if you're feeling tired," Rangiku smiled brightly at him, "I wont mind."

"Will you be here when I wake up?" Kotaro asked as his eyes slid shut.

"Of course sweetie, I wont be going anywhere," she said softly, "Get some rest okay."

* * *

><p>When Unohana returned five minutes later with Rangiku's medication, it was to find Kotaro fast asleep and snuggled up next to Rangiku, who was also fast asleep with a contented look gracing her face. Toushiro hadn't budged and was still snoring away in the chair. Smiling she quietly stepped over to a cupboard and pulled two blankets out, she then walked over to the bed and tucked one around Kotaro, then the second blanket Unohana draped carefully over Toushiro.<p>

With one last glance at the three of them, she quietly left the room heading in the direction of her office.

It didn't take her long to arrive at her office and as she stepped inside she sensed a presense occupying her chair. The moonlight shining through the window fell upon the long mane of white hair, giving it a ghostly sheen in the dark office. Ukitake was slumped to one side, clearly fast asleep.

Smiling at her unexpected visitor she walked over to her desk and placed down the files she'd been carrying. She then stepped over to her chair and placed her hands either side of Ukitake's face, "Juushiro," she called softly trying to wake him.

He shifted in the seat and mumbled quietly but he remained asleep. Sighing softly she leant closer to him and pressed her lips against his own. She lingered for a few seconds and was pleased when she felt him react to her touch. His eyes peeked opened and a smile formed on his face. He sat up a bit straighter in the seat and wrapped an arm around her waist pulling her closer while his other hand travelled to the back of her neck enabling him to deepen the kiss.

When the need for air had them breaking apart, Ukitake sat back in the chair and pulled Unohana into his lap wrapping his arms around her waist, "Ah Retsu, I've missed this. You've been so busy lately we've hardly had any time together."

Unohana adjusted herself so she could see Ukitake's face, although he was smiling she could see the sadness in his eyes, "You're feeling sad Juushiro, I can tell."

The smile slipped from Ukitake's face and he stared back at Unohana making no comment. She placed her hand on the side of his cheek and scanned his face, "And its not because we haven't been spending much time together either."

Ukitake sighed, "Retsu I don't know what to do-"

Ukitake was cut of by Unohana covering his lips with her hand "Shh, I know what's bothering you, but we'll talk about it tomorrow okay?" Ukitake nodded and Unohana removed her hand and rose elegantly to her feet. She reached for his hands and tugged on them gently and he stood up, "Come with me Juushiro," she began to guide him towards her office door.

"Where are we going Retsu?" Ukitake asked genuinely confused.

Unohana squeezed his hand, "Its been a long day, I think its time I retired to my quarters for the night."

"Oh," Ukitake's face brightened up, he then walked past Unohana and opened the door for her. She stepped out into the corridor and Ukitake followed behind her, "Then allow me to be your escort to ensure you arrive home safely," he offered Unohana his arm while smiling.

Unohana smiled back at him warmly, "I was hoping you would say that."

Ukitake grinned and wrapped his arm around her waist then promptly jumped into shunpo taking Unohana along with him.


	17. Chapter 17

Hello, just wanted to say a quick thank you to everybody who left me a review. This is the last chapter on this incredibly long and difficult day I have put them all through lol. Think it started back in chapter 9 _ Anyway lets hope things start to pick up for them. I would'nt hold your breaths though, I've got this story planned out right to the end and believe me... It is far from over *evil laugh*... :O Anyway Happy Reading!

* * *

><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 17<p>

"_Kotaro."_

_Hearing his name being called roused him from his deep medicine induced slumber, he rolled onto his back and was surprised to feel the springy ground beneath him and to hear the sound of leaves crunching._

_Feeling a cool comforting gust of wind envelope him, he peeked his eyes open and blinked a few times to focus his eyes. As his vision cleared he saw a tall orange mass standing above him. Kotaro sat up and craned his neck to look at the orange dragon, who was staring back at him with fondness._

"_Oh its you," Kotaro said smiling back at the dragon, "Hello again!"_

"_Hello child," The orange dragon replied in a gentle tone, "Its good to see that you're recovering well." She whipped her tail around and carefully plucked Kotaro off the ground and lifted him up into the air, "Hold on tightly now little one," the dragon instructed as she deposited Kotaro on her back and began walking up to the top of the hill._

_Kotaro glanced down to the ground below him and recognised the vast meadow from his previous visits. Looking straight ahead he could see the large red maple tree standing proudly at the top of the hill._

_The dragon walked on in silence and it wasn't until they reached the top of the hill that she wrapped her tail around Kotaro again and lowered him back down to the ground gently. Kotaro's eyes were riveted to the vast meadow that spread out below him like a giant green blanket._

"_Have a seat child," The orange dragon instructed._

_Kotaro turned his back on the scenery to see the dragon lounging beneath the maple tree, staring back at him with a slightly amused expression on her face. He stepped closer to the dragon and sank down to the floor, crossing his legs in front of him._

_The dragon adjusted her position and snaked her tail out and curled it around Kotaro's back, "You're probably wondering why you're back here so soon child, correct?"_

_Kotaro tilted his head up to look at the dragon, "You told me last time that I would only find myself here when you have something important to tell me." _

_The dragon nodded her head slowly, "Indeed Kotaro."_

"_So what is it you wanted to tell me?" Kotaro asked getting straight to the point._

_The dragon made a snorting noise which sounded quite like a chuckle, "Its more a warning then anything else young one."_

"_A warning?" Kotaro questioned with a frown, "Did I do something wrong?"_

"_Not exactly, although I do feel that you bit off a lot more then what you could chew child."_

_Kotaro cocked his head to one side confused, "Do you mean I ate too many noodles and they made me ill?"_

_The dragon tipped her head back and roared with laughter, Kotaro folded his arms across his chest and pouted, not understanding why he was being laughed at._

"_Forgive me young one," The dragon said once her laughter had died down and she saw the scowl on Kotaro's face, "What I meant was. Your actions today, even though you didn't know what you were doing, were well beyond your current abilities Kotaro." _

"_My actions?" Kotaro asked puzzled, "What did I do?"_

_The orange dragon stared back at Kotaro for several seconds before she chose to reply, "Tell me Kotaro, what do you know about Shinigami?"_

_Kotaro stared back at the female dragon as he mulled over the question, "My Mummy and Daddy are Shinigami," he answered, "So is Grandad and Gran-Gran, Uncle Shun-shun and Auntie Nan-nan and Momo."_

"_Correct," The dragon nodded back, "What else do you know about Shinigami?"_

"_I know they carry around big swords, but Mummy and Daddy told me not to touch them," Kotaro answered honestly, "Because they are not toys."_

"_Quite right child," The dragon nodded her approval, "Is there anything else you know about Shinigami, or is there anything else you've heard?" _

_Kotaro nodded his head, "Daddy told me a Shinigami is responsible for sending spirits to the Soul Society to keep them safe and to keep the bad Hollows out."_

"_That is right child," The dragon praised, "The act of sending a spirit onto the Soul Society is called Konso, a soul burial. Its one of the main duties of a Shinigami. The other main duty as you rightly said is to keep the Hollows out, which is called Hollow Cleansing. To perform either duty a Shinigami requires the use of a Zanpakuto."_

_Kotaro's eyes lit up on hearing the familiar phrase, "That's another word they use for the swords." _

_The dragon smiled warmly back at Kotaro, "Indeed. They are amongst the few weapons that can be used to combat Hollows. Every Shinigami carries a Zanpakuto, and every Zanpakuto is unique as the swords are both reflections of a Shinigami's soul and power. The Zanpakuto's name is also the name of the living spirit that empowers the sword and lends its strength to the Shinigami who wields it."_

"_There's spirits living inside Mummy and Daddy's swords," Kotaro thought aloud, "Are they invisible? I've never seen them."_

"_Normally, the Zanpakuto spirit can only be seen by its wielder. Otherwise, they dwell in their own inner world, created within the minds of the Shinigami who wield them."_

"_An inner world," Kotaro repeated mulling over the dragons words, "What do these inner worlds look like?"_

"_A Shinigami's inner world is drastically different from another Shinigami's and is unique to themselves. Sometimes when a Zanpakuto's spirit needs to talk with its wielder, the Zanpakuto's spirit can bring its wielder into its inner world." The dragon stretched her long neck and fell quiet as Kotaro digested this information._

_Kotaro sat before her wiggling his toes into the soft grass with a small frown of concentration on his face. He'd been deep in thought for a good five minutes when he suddenly jumped to his feet and stared up at the dragon before him._

_The dragon lowered her head so her snout was level with Kotaro's face, "Say what's on your mind young one," she encouraged kindly._

_Kotaro quickly glanced over his shoulder at the meadow down below before returning his focus to the dragon, "Is this an inner world?" Kotaro asked shyly, "Because it looks too pretty to be a normal world."_

_The dragon closed her eyes and nodded her head slowly._

"_So does that mean, that you're one of those Zanpakuto spirits you told me about?"_

_The dragon opened her eyes again and stared back at Kotaro, she was quiet for several seconds before saying, "Of course young one."_

_Kotaro's mouth fell open, he stumbled back a few steps and the dragon had to whip her tail behind him to stop him from tumbling backwards down the hill side. He regained his footing and he asked in a quiet voice, "So.. does that mean that... this... I mean that you... this place..."_

"_Child, I've told you the last few times you've ended up here. I don't mean you any harm and there's no need to feel shy in my presense. Always feel free to speak your mind."_

_Kotaro took a couple steps closer and looked up at the orange dragon, taking in her slender body and powerful wings, her large tail and her soft, gentle looking face, "You don't scare me, not like that big blue dragon I saw in my dreams."_

"_That's good. Now then, say what's on your mind then I can tell you the reason why I brought you here again."_

"_This is one of those inner worlds. And you're one of those Zanpakuto spirits. And I'm here too, so that means."_

"_Go on," Prompted the dragon kindly._

_Kotaro looked the dragon in the eye, "This is your inner world and you live here!"_

_The dragon who had an expectant look on her face nodded before her expression turned into a frown when she realised Kotaro hadn't quite grasped the situation, "Yes but there's still a bit more to it then that. Think really hard about the information I just told you."_

_Kotaro crossed his arms against his chest and cocked his head to one side. A few minutes later he perked up again, "Oh I think I've got it now!"_

"_Yes, go on," The dragon's face broke out into a huge smile._

"_This is your wielders inner world. So I really shouldn't be here in case they come to see you and they find me here," Kotaro frowned feeling a little bit worried._

_The dragon lifted her tail up and draped it over her eyes trying to hide her sudden frustration. She took a deep breath and regained her inner calm and patience. She then moved her tail from her eyes and whipped it towards Kotaro, grabbing him by the ankle and hoisting him upside down into the air, dangling him before her face._

"_Listen to my words carefully young one," She watched as Kotaro nodded awkwardly upside down, "A Zanpakuto spirit, can only be seen by its wielder. They dwell in their own inner world created within the mind of the Shinigami who wields them. So therefore that means..."_

"_Oh!" Kotaro exclaimed, "I think I understand now."_

_The dragon turned Kotaro the right way up and lowered him back to the ground. Once his feet touched the soft grass he rushed forward throwing his little arms around the dragons snout, "Well then child?" She asked softly wanting to hear him say it to ensure he truly understood._

"_This is an inner world," Kotaro began indicating the meadow behind him, "And you're the Zanpakuto spirit that lives here," Kotaro paused briefly before continuing, "So does that mean..." He frowned in concentration, he wanted to be sure to get it right this time, "The reason why I'm here and why I can see you is because..."_

_The dragon stared back at him patiently._

"_Am I your wielder? Are you my Zanpakuto spirit?" Kotaro asked._

"_Well done child," The dragon praised._

"_But I don't understand," Kotaro stared up at the dragon, "I'm not a Shinigami, how can you be my Zanpakuto? I don't even have a sword."_

"_No you don't child, that is true," The dragon agreed wrapping her tail around Kotaro's back, "But I am your Zanpakuto and you will be a Shinigami one day. When the time is right you will be able to wield my power."_

_Kotaro fell quiet, his head dropped and he was more interested in examining his toes, "We are friends, aren't we?" He asked quietly._

"_Of course child, I am a reflection of your soul and power. You'll come to find nobody knows you as well as I do."_

_The dragon looked down at Kotaro and frowned, "What is it child? She asked noticing his uncertainty, the tip of her tail hooked under his chin and she tilted his face up gently._

"_I don't know what to call you. If we're friends then I need to know what your name is," Kotaro looked at the orange dragon with a serious face, "What's your name?"_

"_I'm sorry child, its not the right time for me to tell you that yet."_

"_Why not? And when will it be the right time?" _

"_Kotaro there are things you wont understand straight away, but in time it will all be made clear to you. You just need to be patient for now."_

"_Okay I guess." Kotaro was silent for a while before he nodded his understanding, "Well if you cant tell me your name, then can I call you Lady Dragon?"_

_The orange dragon sighed heavily causing some steam to escape her nostrils, "If I agree will you allow me to continue telling you exactly why I brought you here again? Its important that you know Kotaro."_

_Kotaro's teal eyes lit up and a grin formed on his face, "You have a deal Lady Dragon."_

_The dragon sighed again and turned away from Kotaro, rising from her slouched position, "Come with me child. I need to show you something." _

_Kotaro hurried after the dragon, he needed to run to keep up with her long stride as she led him back down the hillside. Fortunately she came to a stop at the base of the hill and waited as Kotaro closed the remaining distance between them._

_Kotaro skidded to a halt panting slightly, "So what is it that you wanted to show me?"_

_The orange dragon smiled before shifting her tail to one side, revealing a lone flower growing amongst the vast blanket of grass._

"_Oh a snow drop," Kotaro padded closer to it and crouched down, "I never noticed it before."_

"_Its a recent addition to this world Kotaro," The dragon moved so she could lean her head closer to Kotaro, "Notice how much bigger and stronger it is compared to the regular every day snow drops you'd normally see?"_

"_Yeah! It looks healthier," Kotaro agreed with a smile on his face, "Why is that?" _

"_Its because you created it child," The dragon stated proudly._

_Kotaro's eyes widened and he turned to look at the dragon "I created the flower.. How?"_

"_Well, this would be the reason why I brought you back here Kotaro," The dragon replied in a serious tone, "And why I must warn you to show caution in the future."_

"_So I don't bite off more then I can chew again?" Kotaro asked. The dragon just nodded, frowning Kotaro asked, "But what did I do?"_

"_I assume you know all about spiritual pressure young one?"_

_Kotaro nodded enthusiastically, "Daddy told me all about it."_

"_Then you also know that Shinigami's possess a great amount of spiritual pressure?" _

_Kotaro nodded his little head, "Its the spiritual pressure that gives the Shinigami its power so they can fight Hollows and do stuff like shunpo and kido." _

"_Exactly Kotaro," The dragon replied, "And this brings me to what I wanted to discuss with you."_

_Kotaro sank to the ground once again crossing his legs in front of him, his attention fully focused on the dragon sitting before him._

"_Your parents are two very strong Shinigami, as you're probably already aware, young one," The dragon saw Kotaro's nod of agreement and continued on, "So naturally when you were born, you inherited a base level of spiritual energy from them."_

_Kotaro held his palm up to his face staring at his hand, "I have spiritual pressure too?"_

"_Yes little one and I doubt that you're aware of it, but your energy has begun to grow already," The dragon's tone was serious, "Much sooner then I'd originally anticipated."_

"_Is that a bad thing?" Kotaro asked, his eyebrows knitted together in concern._

"_Its unusual Kotaro," The dragon replied, "And because you've been unaware of it and unable to control it, your pressure has leaked out a couple of times too."_

"_Leaked out?"_

"_Yes, though fortunately it hasn't caused any harm to anyone. Only to yourself."_

_Kotaro pulled himself to his feet and stepped closer to the snow drop, examining it closely, "Myself? How? And how did I create this flower?" He asked pointing a tiny finger at the pure white flower._

_The dragon snaked her tail around Kotaro's middle and lifted him up so he was eye level once again, "Child you have a good heart and I believe the path we shall walk together will be much different from the path walked by your parents."_

"_What do you mean Lady Dragon?" Kotaro asked truly confused._

"_I believe your talents will be better served by helping people," The dragon straightened up and stretched out her delicate wings, "Even more so when the time is right for you to wield my power." _

"_Its good to help people out," Kotaro agreed, "I like helping people."_

"_I'm pleased to hear that child," The dragon placed Kotaro back down on the ground, "Kotaro," The dragon turned to look out on the vast meadow, "Do you know why you suddenly came down with an illness?" _

_Kotaro's hand went straight to his chest, he turned his teal eyes to the dragon and shook his head, "No."_

"_Well it comes back to what I was saying about your growing powers and how they've been leaking out," The dragon glanced down to her feet when she felt Kotaro sit himself down between her legs, "When your fathers powers were growing, they too leaked out because he'd yet to learn how to control them. Without realising it, he'd been freezing his surroundings and unintentionally placing his grandmother in danger. I believe a similar thing is happening to you too."_

_Kotaro's eyes went wide, "Am I hurting people too?"_

"_No no little one," The dragon soothed, "Do not worry, your powers are of a completely different nature then what your fathers are."_

"_Oh," Kotaro replied feeling a bit puzzled, he frowned when he remembered what the dragon had told him only a few minutes before, "But I am hurting myself? Didn't you say that?" _

"_Indeed Kotaro, your power is quite unique. It seems you have the ability to heal and soothe people. However its slightly more complex then straight forward healing with Kido. You don't just simply heal a persons wounds or relieve them of their symptoms if they're ill. You completely absorb their ailment and adopt their condition as your own."_

_Kotaro tilted his face up to see the dragon, his teal eyes full of innocence and curiosity, "So I got sick because I.. I healed somebody?"_

_The dragon nodded, "Yes, and its incredibly lucky that you also seem to have an above average rate of recovery. Although its a good thing that you completely cured the person of their ailment, you must be cautious in the future. If you absorb and adopt a condition that is way beyond your bodies ability to cope. You could die."_

_Kotaro gasped loudly, "Did I make Grandad better again?"_

"_Yes you did young one, but you also made yourself very ill in the process. That is what I meant when I said you'd bitten off a lot more then what you could chew."_

"_Will I get better again?" Kotaro asked fidgeting with his fingers._

"_Of course, you are already over the worst of it. Your Gran-Gran is a marvellous woman when it comes to treating the sick," The dragon stepped away from Kotaro and to put a few metres between the two of them, "You would do well to learn from her, child."_

_Kotaro got to his feet and glanced once more at the brilliantly white snow drop, "Did I create that flower by healing Grandad?"_

"_Very astute Kotaro, and yes you did," The dragon flicked her tail gesturing to the vast expanse of green around them, "From now on every time you help somebody, a flower will bloom in this meadow. Lets make it our life's work to fill this meadow with as many flowers as possible okay?" _

_Kotaro nodded enthusiastically, "We can do that."_

"_I'm glad to hear that," The dragon smiled warmly at him before taking a deep breath, "A gentle soul such as yourself wouldn't do well on a battlefield, fighting is an ugly affair. But helping others to ease their discomfort, you will find much more fulfilling. But first you must learn to control your leaking power young one."_

"_Just like Gran-Gran? She helps lots of people," Kotaro then asked, "Wait how do I learn to control my power?"_

"_Yes Kotaro just like your Gran-Gran, and don't worry you will learn control," The dragon drew in another deep breath and blew out a soothing gust of wind at Kotaro. It wrapped around him like a blanket, instantly making him feel relaxed and sleepy, "Its time for you to go back now child."_

"_Will I remember all of this when I wake up again?" He asked his eyes were already drooping shut, "Or will I think I've just been dreaming again?"_

"_It will just feel like a distant fading dream, but as always you will remember everything I've said on a deep subconscious level." _

"_Bye bye Lady Dragon," Kotaro mumbled sleepily._

"_Goodbye Child, until next time."_

* * *

><p>Toushiro cracked his eyes open and groaned loudly at the pain in his neck and back. He eased himself off the chair he'd fallen asleep in and began rubbing the feeling back into his sniff neck. As he stretched his arms above his head, he couldn't help but sigh in satisfaction as he felt his shoulders pop and the stiff achy feeling in his back ease.<p>

Realising where he'd fallen asleep he stepped over to Rangiku's bed, while avoiding tripping over the blanket that had fallen to the floor. He was pleasantly surprised to see Kotaro snuggled up to Rangiku with a blanket wrapped around him and wondered how long ago Unohana had dropped him off here.

He perched himself on the edge of the bed and he busied himself watching over both Rangiku and Kotaro. Looking at Rangiku's peaceful face, he was relieved to see the colour returning to her features. He leant forwards and cupped her cheek with his hand while he brushed his lips against hers. It didn't surprise him when Rangiku didn't stir, he suspected that the pain medication had her in a deep slumber.

Pulling away he then moved onto Kotaro, "Hows my little man?" He whispered in a low voice. He rested both of his hands on either side of Kotaro's face and was relieved when he didn't feel a burning temperature beneath his fingertips, "You really know how to scare Daddy at times."

He heard a deep chuckle in the back of his mind which had him scowling, 'What's so funny Hyourimaru?'

'Nothing Master,' Hyourimaru rumbled deeply.

Toushiro smoothed Kotaro's hair away from his forehead, his gaze was focused intently on Kotaro's eyes which were fluttering slightly. Toushiro wondered if he was having a dream.

'Master.'

'Hmm?' Toushiro answered, slightly distracted by a small noise Kotaro had made 'He seems to be recovering well, don't you think?'

'Yes he is Master,' Hyourimaru agreed.

'I'm sorry, did you want to tell me something Hyourimaru?'

'Just a heads up more then anything Toushiro.'

'What is it?' Toushiro asked as he readjusted the blanket around Kotaro.

'Cant you feel it? His powers have grown, quite considerably too.'

Toushiro quirked an eyebrow at Hyourimaru's comments, 'Are you sure?' He focused on Kotaro and sought out his sons unique energy signature, 'It feels kinda normal to me.'

'Trust me Master, its grown. You cant tell right now because his energy is weakened from being ill. But once he's fully recovered I'm sure you'll pick up on it.'

'I thought you said his power would stay dormant for several years Hyourimaru?'

'I did Master, and I truly thought that it would. But..'

'But what?'

'He's so much like you. He's going to be a fast leaner and a quick developer.'

'I figured this would be the case,' Toushiro sighed heavily, 'Is there a chance his power will begin to leak out?'

'Hard to say Master, but if he's anything like you I would have to say yes.'

'I don't suppose you can tell me what the nature of his power is can you?' Toushiro placed a hand against Kotaro's cheek, 'Just so I can be on the look out for it?'

'I'm sorry Master, I cant tell you that.' Hyourimaru replied apologetically, ' When you do find out though, I know you will be proud of him. But either way I think it would be for the best if you started to teach him some control methods in the mean time.'

Toushiro closed his eyes and nodded, 'I think it would be for the best too.'

He felt Hyourimaru retreat into the back of his mind and he went back to looking down at Kotaro with a sad expression on his face. Although he knew from the day Kotaro had been born, that it was highly likely his son would one day become a Shinigami too. He'd always hoped that Kotaro would take quite a while to develop in that way. The last thing he'd wanted, was to see his son grow up too fast like he'd been forced to.

"I really wish you didn't have to grow up, little man," He leant forward and kissed Kotaro on his forehead, "But I stick by my promise I made to you when you were born. I will always love and support you, no matter what and I will teach you whatever you need to know. Even if I think you're too young."

Kotaro shifted in his sleep and one of his little hands came up and latched onto the hand Toushiro had rested against his face. Kotaro then snuggled his face into Toushiro's hand. Smiling Toushiro reached inside his haori and pulled Yori out of his inside pocket, placing it between Kotaro and Rangiku. He then kissed both of them before retrieving his hand from Kotaro, "Sweet dreams little man, Rangiku," He then rose to his feet and stepped back over to the chair to settle down for a few more hours of sleep.


	18. Chapter 18

Hello! Authors Notes at the bottom along with an Important announcment.

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 18<p>

When Rangiku's eyes fluttered open the next day, she was met by two identical sets of teal eyes staring intently back at her. Toushiro's eyes softened when she met his gaze and Rangiku saw the corners of his mouth lifting up into a smile. Kotaro's eyes went wide as his whole face lit up, he was practically vibrating with energy. Toushiro had one arm wrapped around Kotaro's waist, restraining him lightly so he couldn't mob Rangiku.

"Hey, its my two favourite guys in the whole world," She smiled brightly, her throat was dry and she knew her voice sounded a little scratchy.

Kotaro stretched his arms out, wiggling his fingers as he tried to reached Rangiku and latch onto her, "Daddy can I give Mummy a big hug now?" Kotaro pleaded. Rangiku noticed he sounded a lot better then what he had during the night.

"Just wait a few seconds longer little man," Toushiro chuckled before asking Rangiku, "How are you feeling, are you in any pain?"

She pulled herself up and eased herself back into the pillows so she was sitting up a bit better. Whatever pain medication Unohana had given her during the night had done her wonders. Where her side had been burning painfully during the night from where the acidic poison had eaten through the skin tissue and muscles, now it'd dwindled down to a dull ache leaving the gashes in her side feeling a bit tender.

"I feel a little bit sore," She coughed slightly when her words caught in her dry throat. She looked towards the night stand to see if there was a drink of water.

Toushiro followed her gaze and understood what she needed, "Kotaro, you can give Mummy a hug now, but I want you to be careful okay?"

"Okay Daddy," Kotaro nodded and grinned at Rangiku as he tried to wiggle over to her, "I wont hurt Mummy."

Toushiro released Kotaro who scrambled over to Rangiku and threw his arms around her neck while planting a wet slobbery kiss on her cheek. Rangiku wrapped her arms around Kotaro and pulled him closer to her, "Somebody is feeling better today," Rangiku mentioned as she too planted a soft kiss on Kotaro's cheek.

"My chest feels all better," Kotaro replied brightly.

Rangiku glanced at Toushiro, she vaguely recalled him saying that Kotaro had been very ill and that he'd been coughing up blood. Toushiro gave her a look that she knew meant, 'We'll talk later,' he then handed her a glass of water which she accepted gratefully.

She took a few sips before handing the glass back to Toushiro and then returned to hugging Kotaro, "I've really really really missed you sweetie," she snuggled her face into his soft white hair and breathed in his familiar scent.

Several minutes later Kotaro's muffled voice came from where his face was pressed against her chest, "Mummy.."

"Yes sweetie?" She asked glancing down, she loosened her hold on him and he lifted his eyes to hers.

"When can we go home?"

"Hopefully soon," Rangiku smiled, "We'll have to wait and see if Gran-Gran thinks we're well enough to go home first."

Kotaro pouted then turned to Toushiro, "Daddy can we go home now?"

"Soon little man," Toushiro chuckled and rested his hand on Kotaro's head, "Lets wait and see what Unohana says."

"But I feel fine," Kotaro argued, "I don't even have a cough now."

"That maybe so Kotaro," Toushiro had a serious look on his face, "But we still don't know why you became ill all of a sudden. I assume Unohana will want to run some tests on you."

"Mummy," Kotaro whined stubbornly, before flopping heavily against Rangiku's chest, "I don't want to have some tests, I want to go home."

Although Rangiku had slid her eyes shut, she could tell from Kotaro's tone that he was pouting. She knew that his sudden moody behaviour was the direct result of Toushiro and herself being away from him. Then the added distress he would've felt when only Toushiro had returned home with obvious injuries, only to tell Kotaro that she herself was in the Fourth because she'd been injured too. Kotaro had always been sensitive like that, when either one of them had been away on a mission he'd always become a little bit unsettled on their return. It didn't help in this instance that Kotaro had been ill. Although it was rare for Kotaro to become sick, whenever he did he would become quite crabby just like his father.

"Oh sweetie don't fret," Rangiku soothed, while stroking Kotaro's hair, "I know you've been feeling a bit upset because me and Daddy have been away, but we're back now and we're all together again so there's no need to feel upset now. Is there?"

Kotaro looked up at her with puppy eyes and shook his head.

"Good, now you can stop sulking and start smiling again, okay?" She said tapping Kotaro on his nose affectionately.

Kotaro stared back at her stubbornly while trying to keep a straight face, however Rangiku saw a slight flicker in the corner of his mouth, "Oh what was that just then Kotaro?" She asked pointing at his mouth, "Kinda looked like you were going to smile for a second there."

Kotaro clamped his mouth shut and shook his head, yet he failed to hide the growing smile in his eyes.

"No?" Rangiku gasped, "Are you sure?"

Kotaro nodded his head and folded his arms across his chest.

"Well that just wont do at all," Rangiku declared resting a finger against her lips, "Toshi what should we do? We cant have Kotaro not smiling now, can we?"

Toushiro perched himself on the edge of Rangiku's bed and draped his arm across her shoulders, "No we cant Rangiku," He replied playing along, "What do you suggest we do about it?"

"Hmm, I don't know," Rangiku replied sitting forward and resting her hands against Kotaro's side, "Do you have any good ideas?"

"Well," Toushiro tilted his head to one side, "I do actually."

Rangiku turned to Toushiro and grinned, "Well do tell."

Toushiro leant closer to her and brushed his lips against her ear, which sent a pleasant shiver down her back as he whispered into her ear. He pulled away with a smirk on his face, before getting to his feet and plopping himself back down on the chair. Rangiku returned her attention back to Kotaro who was nervously looking between them. She smiled brightly at Kotaro, "Last chance sweetie, are you going to smile for us... or do I have to..."

Kotaro let out an ear piercing scream that echoed loudly around the room as Rangiku's fingers sought out his ribs and began to tickle the life out of him. Kotaro began to wiggle and squirm, his legs kicked out and his arms flailed as his childish squeals and giggles filled the room.

Rangiku kept up the onslaught on his ribs while he gasped out between breaths, "Mummy... stop... it tickles... cant breathe...," he let out another loud scream and tried to bat her hands away.

Rangiku grinned back and punctuated her words by poking and tickling his ribs, "Kotaro... Hitsugaya... will... you... stop... being... a... grumpy... pants... and... start... smiling!"

"Okay! Okay!" Kotaro squealed as he tried to twist away from Rangiku's hands, "Mummy let go!" Rangiku released him and Kotaro promptly shuffled to the bottom of the bed so he was out of her reach.

Rangiku observed Kotaro who was busy trying to avoid her gaze, he had an adorable scowl on his face as he tried to show his displeasure at being tickled like that. She knew first hand how complex Kotaro's personality could be. It was no secret that Toushiro and herself were polar opposites and Kotaro had inherited a good mix of their personality traits. However where she'd predicted that a good tickle attack would be just the thing to snap Kotaro out of his grumpy mood, looking at him now clearly there was still an underlying issue eating away at him.

"Kotaro," She called, Kotaro reluctantly lifted his eyes to meet her gaze, "Come here sweetie," She held her arms open invitingly for a hug.

Kotaro stared back her cautiously, half expecting it to be an ambush again.

"I promise I wont tickle you again," She said understanding his reluctance.

Kotaro lifted his hand and wiggled his little finger at her, "Pinky promise?"

Rangiku tried to lean forwards to hook her little finger around Kotaro's but she stopped abruptly when she felt a sharp stabbing pain in her side. Toushiro who'd been sitting on the chair watching the two of them got to his feet and stepped over to the bed, "Rangiku are you okay?"

She held a hand up to him, "I'm fine Toshi, I just moved a bit too quick," She then smiled brightly at Kotaro and wiggled her little finger, "Pinky promise."

Satisfied that he wasn't going to be subjected to another tickle attack, Kotaro crawled forwards and allowed himself to be enveloped in Rangiku's embrace.

"I love you sweetie," Rangiku swayed him gently from side to side while stroking his back soothingly, "I know something is bothering you Kotaro, will you tell me about it?"

Kotaro was distractedly playing with a long strand of her strawberry blonde hair, he was intent on running the silky strand through his fingers, he sighed then rested his head on her shoulder and mumbled comprehensively.

Toushiro had perched himself on the edge of the bed again, wrapping his arm around Rangiku's shoulders and resting his head against hers. With his other hand he rested it gently on Kotaro's head, "You need to speak clearly little man. How are we to know what's wrong if you don't tell us."

"You left me behind," Kotaro admitted as he glanced up at the two of them with his sad puppy dog eyes, "Will you both be going away again?"

"Aww sweetie," Rangiku kissed him on his forehead, "Is that what's bothering you? You're worried that both me and Daddy are going to leave you again?"

Kotaro nodded sadly his eyes were starting to shine with unshed tears.

"Kotaro this mission was a one off," Toushiro began, "It was also a last minute order so I had no chance of trying to rearrange it. If I'd had more warning I would've arranged it so Mummy could have stayed behind with you. But don't worry okay, I'll make sure that it doesn't happen again."

Kotaro looked back and forth between Toushiro and Rangiku before grinning and holding up his little pinky. Chuckling Toushiro wrapped his slightly larger digit around it, "Pinky promise little man," Toushiro then pulled both Rangiku and Kotaro into a protective hug.

The sound of the door opening had them breaking up the group hug as they all glanced towards the door to see Unohana stepping into the room closely followed by Hanataro.

"Unohana," Toushiro greeted as he got to his feet.

"Gran-Gran!" Kotaro called enthusiastically, he crawled to the bottom of the bed and stretched his arms out for a hug.

"My, someone is feeling a lot better today," Unohana smiled warmly as she scooped Kotaro up into her arms.

"My chest feels all better Gran-Gran," Kotaro patted his chest with a huge smile on his face.

"That's good to hear Kotaro, but I still want to check you over sunshine," Unohana lowered Kotaro back onto the bed then stepped over to Rangiku, "Hanataro can you examine Toushiro's arm please."

"Yes Captain Unohana," Hanataro complied then stepped over to Toushiro who had sat himself down on the chair again.

"How are you feeling today Rangiku?" Unohana asked with her impeccable bedside manner, "Are you in any pain?"

"I feel a bit sore on my side Captain Unohana," Rangiku tried to sit up a little bit more but another sharp pain in her side had her grimacing.

"Please keep still Rangiku," Unohana advised when she saw the look on Rangiku's face, "I think one of your wounds may have reopened."

"I did feel a sharp pain a little while ago," Rangiku admitted.

"While your wounds are healing Rangiku, I strongly advise you not to strain yourself. They'll heal much quicker that way."

Rangiku closed her eyes while Unohana began to peel the bandages off her ribs. Feeling movement on the bed she peeked them open again to find that Kotaro had crawled closer to her, looking at her with concern, "Is Mummy hurting?"

"A little bit sweetie, but I'll be fine," No sooner had the words left her mouth she was hissing at the burning in her side. Unohana had peeled off the last bandage and the cool air hitting the open wound had caused the pain to flare up again.

Kotaro flinched at the unexpected hiss but instead of backing away he reached a tiny hand out and held onto Rangiku's hand.

"I'm sorry Rangiku," Unohana soothed gently, "Its the larger of the three gashes that's split open, I'll have it sealed up again in no time. Then I can re-dress the wound for you," Unohana flicked her wrist and a green ball of healing kido began to glow softly in her palm.

Just like the night before Kotaro watched in complete fascination as Unohana began the task of healing and sealing Rangiku's wound. He raised his tiny hand and copied the wrist flick Unohana had just done. After several minutes of trying and gaining no result Kotaro gave up feeling a little frustrated, "Gran-Gran, how do you do that?"

"Do what Kotaro?" Unohana asked conversationally.

Kotaro tried flicking his wrist again, imitating Unohana's earlier movement, "Make it glow like that, with just a flick of the wrist."

"I guess after all the years I've spent patching people up," Unohana looked at Kotaro with fondness, "Its become second nature to me. Whereas when I first started learning how to heal people, I had to really concentrate to make it work. Just like anyone else would learning a new skill." Kotaro fell silent as Unohana continued healing Rangiku's wounds.

To distract herself from the pain Rangiku looked over to Toushiro, he was holding his arm out straight as Hanataro slowly unwrapped the bandaging surrounding his arm. As the final layer fell away she felt her stomach churn and couldn't help the tiny gasp that'd escaped her lips. Toushiro's arm was red raw with large blisters dotted randomly over his charred skin, his hand and fingertips were black from where they'd taken the initial brunt of the Cero blast.

"Its going to take several treatments before your arm is fully healed again Captain Hitsugaya," Hanataro informed, his hand glowed as he ran the healing kido up and down Toushiro's arm.

"I see," Toushiro replied without looking at his arm. Rangiku suspected that he too was trying to distract himself from his pain by focusing on something else. She followed his intense gaze and she saw for herself what had grabbed Toushiro's attention. Kotaro was sat on the bed staring at his palm with intense focus, while occasionally flicking his wrist. He kept it up for several minutes before dropping his hand in frustration. Rangiku glanced back to Toushiro who seemed to have a deep thoughtful expression on his face.

"There we go Rangiku," Unohana's gentle voice broke through her musings, "I've re-sealed your wounds and put some fresh bandaging around them."

Rangiku returned her full attention to Unohana, "Thank you. It feels much better."

"When I assessed your condition yesterday, I thought I would have to keep you in for a few days. But since your fever broke as soon as the poison was extracted from your system you have recovered quite well," Unohana lifted Rangiku's hand to check her pulse, "I'm happy enough to discharge you from my care, provided you take it easy, get plenty of rest and make sure you don't strain yourself too much."

"Wait, I can go home today?" She asked, Unohana's statement had taken her by surprise.

"Yes Rangiku as long as you heed my advice."

"I want to go home too," Kotaro's voice pleaded from the bottom of the bed, his face looked distraught at the prospect of having to stay in the Fourth while Rangiku got to go home.

Unohana stepped away from Rangiku's side and scooped Kotaro back up into her arms, "I need to run a few tests on you first Kotaro before I can discharge you."

"I don't want to have some tests," Kotaro cried out looking unhappy and miserable, "I want to go home with Mummy."

Unohana as patient as ever placed Kotaro back down on the bed and decided to switch tactics, "Well if you don't want to have some tests, can you at least help me out with something?"

Kotaro stared back at Unohana looking puzzled, "Help how?"

"Hold your hand out like this Kotaro," Unohana held his hand gently and turned it so his palm was facing up, "Then with these two fingers I want you to rest them on your wrist like this," She then guided his two fingers to rest over his pulse point on his wrist, "Can you feel that?"

"Yeah!" Kotaro beamed happily.

"Every time your heart beats, you can feel it here in your wrist," Unohana straightened up and reached for her clipboard, "Now then, do you think you could count the beats for me?"

Kotaro nodded enthusiastically and Unohana couldn't help but smile, "Good boy, now I'll tell you when to start and I want you to keep counting until I stay stop okay?"

"Okay Gran-Gran!" Kotaro grinned showing off his dimples.

"Ready.. Go!" Unohana started him off counting while she kept an eye on the time.

Rangiku leant back into her pillow and closed her eyes while Unohana checked over Kotaro and discreetly carried out the tests she needed to do. She sighed happily knowing that she would be allowed home soon. Even though she would have to rest and take it easy, it would still be nice to go home and get back to some semblance of normalcy.

Toushiro's words came back to her from the day before, when he mentioned about the three of them taking a holiday soon. At the time she recalled feeling quite drowsy from her fever and the medication Unohana had given her and so she hadn't commented much on it. But now she was feeling better she felt quite excited at the prospect of taking Kotaro for his first trip to the World of the Living. Just like Toushiro, she too had many ideas and suggestions on where they could take him and what she wanted to show him. However there was one pressing matter that Toushiro and herself had to see too first. Kotaro's Birthday. She couldn't believe her little baby would be turning five soon, it felt like the time had flown by. She knew that Toushiro and herself would have to make a discreet day trip to the Living World so they could buy him a few presents.

She already had a general idea on what she wanted to get Kotaro this year, she hadn't told Toushiro yet but she had a feeling he would approve. It was a special birthday after all.

Rangiku felt a hand cup her cheek and then a pair of soft warm lips pressed themselves against her other cheek. Peeking her eyes open she saw that Toushiro was stood by her side once again, she noticed that his arm was freshly bandaged up and contained inside a sling, "Hey there," she smiled happily.

"Hey," Toushiro answered softly, "It looked like you'd nodded off again."

"I was just thinking," She reached a hand up and rested her palm against his cheek.

"Sounds dangerous," Toushiro joked, "Especially with that smile you had."

Rangiku playfully slapped him, "Its nothing like that Toshi," she said with mock indignation, "I was just thinking about Kotaro, you do realise its his birthday in three weeks time."

"I'm fully aware of it Rangiku and I suspect you've already been making plans for it, hence the smile," Toushiro gave her a knowing look.

"I might have a general idea," she smiled before switching her gaze to Kotaro. To say Kotaro had initially refused to have any tests done, he seemed to be fully engaged and enjoying himself 'helping' Unohana as she did the various checks and tests she needed to do on him. Rangiku was amazed to see that Unohana had successfully managed to obtain a blood sample from Kotaro without him screaming the place down.

At the moment Kotaro was sat on the bed clutching a small silver ball between his palms, his face full of concentration. Rangiku raised an eyebrow and glanced at Toushiro, "She's doing the spiritual pressure check on him?" She whispered quietly to Toushiro.

Toushiro nodded without taking his eyes off Kotaro, "It appears so."

"Why though?" Rangiku asked frowning, "I thought you said Kotaro's power would stay dormant for several years, isn't that what Hyourimaru told you?"

Toushiro silenced her by crushing his lips against hers. When he pulled away again he said in a low voice, "I think it would be for the best if we discussed this once we get home."

Rangiku was about to retort when Toushiro added, "Besides you can tell me all about your ideas for-" he cocked his head towards Kotaro, not needing to say any more, "Okay?"

Rangiku said nothing for a long time as she digested Toushiro's words. She was slightly annoyed that he wouldn't tell her anything right now, but she knew that he would have his reasons so she decided to let it go. He would tell her later, she'd make sure of it. She plucked Yori, Kotaro's blue stuffed dragon off the bed and snuggled her face into it, breathing in Kotaro's familiar scent that still lingered on the toy, an odd mixture of cookies, soap bubbles and autumn, "Okay," She whispered quietly.

"Mummy look!" Kotaro called happily as he crawled back over to Rangiku. Once he'd settled himself by her side he held his arm out and pointed at the crook of his elbow, where Unohana had taken a blood sample, "I got a smiley face."

"Aww its a little smiley bumblebee," Rangiku cooed, "Come here," she pulled Kotaro into her arms.

Unohana stepped forward with her clipboard in hand, "Well Rangiku I'm happy enough to send both you and Kotaro home. I've ran a few tests on Kotaro to find out what caused his illness and why, but it will take several days to fully analyse the results."

"Is it possible that its the same condition that affects Ukitake?" Toushiro asked.

"The symptoms were very much identical to Juushiro's condition, I've also ran similar tests on him to compare results," Unohana paused and looked at her clipboard, "I should be able to tell you more in a few days time."

"I see," Toushiro replied glancing down at Kotaro.

"As soon as I find anything out I will contact you," Unohana placed the clipboard down and clasped her hands in front of her, "So in the mean time keep a close eye on Kotaro and if he becomes ill again let me know immediately. Rangiku take care not to move too sharply for the next few days and Toushiro, I know it can be bothersome but keep your sling on for a few days."

Unohana went through the motions of prescribing medicines and pain killers, giving them advice about their wounds and asking if they had any more questions. She then had them signing the usual discharge papers before she finally left to carry on with the rest of her rounds, leaving them free to leave whenever they were ready.

So thirty minutes later and after being officially discharged, Rangiku, Toushiro and Kotaro stepped out of the Fourth division into the chilly September air, heading back home to the Tenth division.

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><p>Hello my readers firstly I would like to apologise for the late update. I wont go into too much detail so all I'm going to say is - Its been a difficult couple of weeks.<p>

Now onto the rest of what I would like to say. I would like to thank, Emerald Tsukino, LilShiroLover85, Akai-Miko, Prince of Winter Dragons and Moonstar2015 for continuingly reviewing my chapters. Your support has been a huge help to me in more ways then one.

Now I have several bits of news. First off I've had a story whirling around in my head for several months now and I think its time I shared the idea with you. Its going to be another Hitsu/Matsu fic :D Or to be more precise, its the story of how Toushiro and Rangiku got together. I suppose you could say its the prequel to Someone To Lean on. I have a general idea what I'm gonna call it, but nothing concrete as of yet. This story, STWOY still has a way to go and so it will be my primary focus until I've finished it. Although saying that, it wont stop me from jotting down ideas =).

And finally, as some of my readers may know from reading STLO. Last october I had a really bad accident where I severely damaged my knee. I had to have an operation on it to repair the damage and I was unable to walk for about 3-4 months. I've literally had to learn how to walk again :O Also to add insult to injury because I was unable to work I had to leave my job and all the stress of what happened caused me to have a nervous breakdown. I think thats why I started writing back in January, to give me something to focus on other then my injury. All your reviews and comments about my stories have really helped me through one of the most difficult times in my life, so Thank You I really do appriciate it. Last week was literally a year ago when I had the accident and I must admit it did freak me out slightly that a whole year had gone by just like that D:

And for the final bit of news, I've managed to find another job and the best thing about it? I'le be working part time from the comfort of my own home so I should still easily be able to carry on writing my stories for you :D YAY!

So that shall be all for now, sorry if I've rambled on for a bit. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I shall see you when I post chapter 19. ^_^


	19. Chapter 19

Hello Everybody, once again I'm sorry for the late update. I had literally written half of the chapter which was focusing on shun/Nan when I realised it just wasn't working. So I scrapped it and went back to the drawing board. The shun/Nan scene is much too early to reveal yet _ So I hope you enjoy this revised version instead. I loved writing it and I'm sure it will go down well. As always thank you for all of your lovely reviews and support. It meant a lot to me, Thank you =)

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 19<p>

It had taken a week for Toushiro and Rangiku to fully recover from their injuries. In that week Rangiku had spent most of her time at home with Kotaro, whereas Toushiro had taken just one day to rest before he was back in the office working diligently on the paperwork which had accumulated whilst they'd been away on their mission.

During their first night back at home Toushiro had told Rangiku about the obvious tension between Ukitake and Kyouraku. Rangiku had been shocked to hear that the two of them had come to blows and equally stunned to hear that Shunsui had been injured somehow, she was shocked even more when Toushiro had mentioned that according to Ukitake and Unohana it was likely Shunsui had been beaten up.

Rangiku honestly didn't know what to make of it all, even the message she'd received from Nanao while away on their mission hadn't made any sense. All she'd managed to understand from it was that Nanao wasn't feeling too well and that she was finding it a bit difficult being around Shunsui. After that she'd been busy on the mission and she hadn't heard anything else from Nanao since. Toushiro had also mentioned that Ukitake had said things were a little odd between Shunsui and Nanao, when she'd pressed for more information on the matter Toushiro simply replied, "That's all I've heard, even I don't know the full story." But he did mention during the last week he'd been back in the office that Shunsui had been avoiding Ukitake like a plague, hardly anyone had set their eyes on Nanao since she'd been in the Fourth that night. Some people had been speculating that she'd been keeping herself shut away in the office all day which wasn't uncommon for her, while others seemed to be under the impression that Nanao refuses to leave Shunsui's house. There was even some vicious rumours circulating around the Seireitei about the two of them having a vicious fight one night and nobody had seen Nanao since because Shunsui was holding her hostage inside his house.

Rangiku shook her head and sighed in exasperation, as if her two closest friends would dream of hurting each other. People really needed to keep their opinions to themselves. That was how rumours began and once a rumour had been started they'd generally spread like wildfire and could be just as damaging to all concerned.

She'd been hoping to catch up with Ukitake but so far she hadn't seen him once since being back in the Seireitei, not only did she want to thank him for looking after Kotaro she also wanted to find out about Shunsui and Nanao. Ukitake was Shunsui's best friend, who else could tell her more about what was happening between Shunsui and Nanao and also clear up some of the horrible rumours that were doing the rounds. However according to Toushiro, Ukitake was keeping his distance from Shunsui for the time being, it seemed Ukitake was also in fact avoiding Toushiro and herself too. Which wasn't just a little bit strange, it was also damn near frustrating for her, she needed to know about Shunsui and Nanao. But even more so, she wanted to ask him about Kotaro and whether he'd settled down okay while she'd been away and also to make sense of his sudden illness and why the symptoms were similar to Ukitake's illness.

It'd been a week and Unohana still hadn't contacted them yet about Kotaro's test results. She'd been watching Kotaro like a hawk but so far he'd been his usual happy bubbly self with no signs of a relapse.

Sighing heavily Rangiku tossed the bed cover to one side and sat herself up in bed and reached her arms up high above her head, relishing the fact that she could stretch fully without any pains in her side.

She'd been considering rolling over and going back to sleep but one glance at the clock had her climbing out of bed. Kotaro would most likely be waking up any time soon and needing some breakfast. She straightened the bed covers out and plucked her dressing gown off the nearby chair and tossed it around her shoulders, the mornings were starting to feel quite cold now.

Rangiku stepped out of her bedroom and walked a few steps down the hallway, stopping once she was outside Kotaro's bedroom. She silently slid the door open and peered into the semi lit room only to find that Kotaro's bed was already vacant. She wondered briefly whether Toushiro had taken him to the office with him, but she felt Kotaro's cool energy coming from down the hallway along with several odd bumps, cracks and frustrated growls.

Curious she padded lightly down the hallway careful not to make a sound, when she reached the kitchen door she paused and listened to the odd sounds coming from within. There was the clatter of knives and forks, another crack followed by a splat, then finally a loud shattering crash as something ceramic met the floor.

"Oh no!" Came Kotaro's voice through the closed door.

Rangiku reached for the door to slide it open and stepped into the kitchen, "Kotaro sweetie what are you doing?"

"Don't come in Mummy! I'm not ready yet!"

Rangiku swept her eyes around the room taking in the mess and devastation. Kotaro was standing on his tiptoes with a tea towel wrapped around his middle as a make shift apron, trying to reach the counter with an egg clutched in his hand. Surrounding his feet were several broken eggs laying splattered on the floor along with the broken remains of a mixing bowl.

"Err sweetie what are you trying to do?" Rangiku asked amused.

"Making breakfast," Kotaro looked away from the counter and over his shoulder at Rangiku, "Daddy told me to look after you while he's at work, so I'm making breakfast for Mummy!"

"Aww sweetie," Rangiku returned Kotaro's smile, he turned back to whatever task he'd been attempting and misjudged the distance between himself and the counter. The egg he'd been holding in his hand smashed against the counter edge and the gooey yolk splattered into his hair, before running off and slopping onto the kitchen floor with the others.

"Owwww not again!" Kotaro cried out dismayed.

Rangiku burst out laughing, she couldn't help it, "Oh Kotaro you're too cute."

"Its not funny Mummy," He pouted back.

She clutched an arm around her side because she could feel the muscles pulling where she'd been injured. She stopped laughing once she felt a particularly painful tug.

Kotaro padded over to her and wrapped his arms around her legs, "Is Mummy hurting?"

"I'm okay sweetie, I just feel a little sore still," Rangiku placed a hand on Kotaro's head forgetting he had egg goo in his hair, "I'm curious though, what were you trying to make me for breakfast?"

Kotaro grinned and proudly said, "I was trying to make Mummy an om-thingy!"

"An omelette Kotaro," Rangiku corrected, she then glanced back at the mess on the floor and cocked her head to one side, "Well it does kinda look like an omelette," she tapped a finger against her chin, "How many eggs do we have left?"

Kotaro disentangled himself from Rangiku and padded back over to the counter, he reached up on his tiptoes again and plucked the last egg out of the box, "There's one left Mummy."

"Well you hold onto it and I'll get this mess cleaned up and then I'll show you how to make a proper omelette okay?"

Kotaro nodded enthusiastically and placed the egg down on the counter he then made to run back over to Rangiku, but in doing so he stepped in one of the broken eggs and ended up slipping on his butt instead.

"Oh careful there sweetie," As Rangiku stepped over to him the egg Kotaro had set down on the counter rolled off the edge. Unfortunately Kotaro had chosen that second to look up and the falling egg made contact with his face, the fragile shell broke on impact and its slimy contents splattered his face, "Ugh Mummy!"

Rangiku wrapped her arms around her middle and doubled over laughing, it hurt like hell to do so but there was nothing more she could do at present. Kotaro's face was pouting back at her but her laughter was infectious and soon Kotaro was giggling his head off too.

A few minutes later Rangiku was gasping for breath and wiping the tears out of her eyes, she crouched down and swept Kotaro off the floor, "Lets get you cleaned up now shall we?"

"Okay Mummy," Kotaro threw his arms around her neck and snuggled into her neck.

"I feel like going out somewhere today," she swept out of the kitchen heading for the bathroom, "Any ideas where you want to go?"

"Oh! Oh!" Kotaro wiggled his legs indicating he wanted to be put down, "I know."

Rangiku lowered him to the floor and watched as he whizzed away down the hallway, ten seconds later he returned clutching a blue book, "Can we watch Daddy teaching his sword class?"

"How do you know he's teaching a sword class today young man?" Rangiku asked.

Kotaro waved the blue book at her, "Its in Daddy's schedule, look!"

"Oh sweetie you really shouldn't look in Toshi's log book. Its for Captains eyes only."

"But I like to know where Daddy is when he's not here," Kotaro looked at her with puppy eyes, "And Mummy has a meeting today too."

"What! No I don't," At least she couldn't recall having any upcoming meetings.

"That's not what it says in Daddy's book," Kotaro replied innocently.

"Hey give me the book please Kotaro," She asked extending her hand.

Kotaro frowned before a smirk crept onto his face, "But Mummy you said its for Captains eyes only," he whipped the book behind his back for safe keeping.

"Kotaro give me the book please," she took a step closer and Kotaro backed off a step.

Grinning he shook his head, "But you said we really shouldn't look in Daddy's book."

Oh the little snot! Just like his father Rangiku thought, "Right I'm going to give you ten seconds to hand the book over young man."

"What happens after ten seconds Mummy?" Kotaro replied cheekily.

Rangiku held out both her hands and wiggled her fingers at him, "How about a tickle attack?"

Kotaro's eyes went wide, he then turned on his heel and legged it down the hallway.

"Kotaro you little snot, get back here!" Rangiku shouted as she began the pursuit of her mischievous son.

* * *

><p>In the training yard Toushiro stood observing a small group of recruits that were a new addition to their division. He'd begun the training session by having the recruits do a basic warm up routine and now he had them partnered up and doing a basic sword routine.<p>

One person would attack, while the other would have to defend then counter with a strike of their own. Although it was only the most basic of exercises, he'd already managed to weigh up each of the new recruits and he knew exactly which units he were going to assign each of them to, where they could each receive the right amount of training and encouragement to help further their development.

One recruit in particular already stood out as a good potential for a future seated officer if ever a position became available. She was a small slender girl with short brown hair who was holding her own quite well against her partner who was considerably larger then her, a huge hulking guy who out classed her in size, weight and strength, yet he failed to land a single blow on her due to her excellent agility and her ability to keep a cool head.

He made a note on his clipboard to add her to unit two, which Rangiku was in charge of, he knew the girl would do well under Rangiku's careful guidance.

After making a few final notes on his clipboard he returned his attention to the small assembled group, "Okay good job," The recruits stopped what they were doing and turned to face him, "Now then, I would like you all to spread out so you have plenty of space between yourself and the person next to you."

The recruits jostled around for several seconds until they were all adequately spaced out. Toushiro watched them and made a mental note to schedule some formation exercises to help teach them how to better organize themselves as a group, "This next exercise is simple. Using your swords I want you to do some basic kata's, slow and steady."

"Yes Sir!" The recruits answered back before they all started their various moves. It wasn't immediately obvious to the recruits or anyone else passing by, but Toushiro was assessing the recruits on what kata's they chose to do, he could tell a lot about a person on what their preferred moves were. Some people preferred offence while others preferred defence, it told him a lot about that persons personality which was very important when it came to placing them in the right unit.

"DADDY!"

Toushiro looked up from his clipboard just as Kotaro came running around the corner and hurtling across the training yard towards him. He'd just placed his clipboard down when Kotaro launched himself into his arms, "Someone's energetic this morning, have you tired Rangiku out already?"

"Mummy's coming," Kotaro panted, slightly out of breath, "Daddy can I watch your sword class today?"

Toushiro knew Kotaro meant his next class which was an advanced sword class for his seated officers, "I thought you would've wanted to go with Mummy to her SWA meeting today little man."

There was a swish of Shunpo and Rangiku landed neatly next to him, "Kotaro are you sure you want to stay here with Daddy? You know Gran-Gran, Auntie Nan-nan and Momo will be there. Don't you want to see them?"

"I do," Kotaro turned his face away glancing at the new recruits as they performed their kata's, "But I really want to watch Daddy's class."

"Okay that's fine sweetie," Rangiku placed a hand on his head and pulled him in for a kiss, "But just remember, this is a training ground and not a playground. Make sure you're not in anyone's way, I don't want you to get accidentally injured all right?"

Kotaro's face lit up when he heard Rangiku giving him permission to stay, he quickly looked up at Toushiro waiting for his confirmation. Toushiro looked him in the eye and could see the curiosity in them, for ages Kotaro had been begging Toushiro to let him watch his class. So far he'd refused every time, telling him he could once he was a bit older.

Generally the training classes went by without incidence, with some top quality sparring sessions. However in the past Toushiro had been rather reluctant to let Kotaro sit and watch just in case an accident did occur. His advanced class was very skilled and controlled, yet accidents do happen even to the most skilled person and he just didn't want to risk Kotaro seeing someone's arm or fingers get severed.

"Daddy," Kotaro was staring him with his puppy eyes, "Can I stay and watch this time, please?"

"Okay," Toushiro agreed, he saw Kotaro's eyes light up once again, "But! There's a few rules you have to follow, do you understand?"

Kotaro nodded enthusiastically.

"Rule number one. Once the training session begins, you're to stay where I can see you at all times, which will be here," He pointed to the few wooden steps that led down onto the training yard, "You're to sit and stay there, understood?"

"Yes Daddy!"

"Rule number two. Under no circumstances whatsoever are you allowed to step foot onto the training yard while training is in progress, understood?"

Kotaro glanced at Rangiku then smiled back at him, "Okay Daddy."

"Rule number three. While training is in progress, I need you to be very quiet. Its very important that my class isn't distracted due to the nature of the training, do you understand?" Toushiro realised he was in Captain mode right now rather then Dad mode. He generally avoided speaking to Kotaro in Captain mode, but in this instance it wouldn't hurt. He needed Kotaro to fully understand that sword training was just as dangerous to watch as it was to participate. He knew Kotaro was a good kid and that he generally did what he was told, but he wanted to double-triple check that he was aware and understood the dangers.

"I understand Daddy, I'll follow the rules."

Toushiro nodded, "Good man."

"Oh Toshi! I need to run or I'm going to be late," Rangiku swept forward and flung her arms around his neck, she kissed him on his lips then pulled away, she then did the same to Kotaro, "Right you two have fun and I'll see you after lunch."

"Bye Mummy," Kotaro waved as she stepped into shunpo and vanished, he then toddled over to the steps and sat himself down next to a barrel that was filled with wooden practice swords in various sizes ranging from small tanto's and up to the much larger nodachi.

Satisfied that Kotaro had taken his words to heart, he returned his attention to the small group of recruits, who had been diligently performing their kata's despite the sudden interruption of Rangiku and Kotaro, "Okay that's all we'll be doing for today. I wanted to assess all your basic sword abilities for unit placements. I shall go over my notes and you will receive notice of which unit you shall be joining and when that units next training session will take place. Once you have been assigned to a unit you will report to that units leader for all future training sessions. If you feel that your unit placement isn't right for you, you may take it up with the units leader who will then inform me and I shall place you elsewhere," Toushiro scanned the small group before asking, "Any questions?"

The new recruits looked around at each other and shook their heads before chorusing, "No Sir!"

"Very well, Dismissed!"

As the small group dispersed from the training yard, Toushiro went over to Kotaro and sat himself down beside him. He noticed that Kotaro was peering curiously into the barrel full of weapons, or to be more precise he was eyeing up the large nodachi. He draped his arm around Kotaro's shoulder, "That sword is much too big for you little man, hell even I would have issues if I tried to wield it."

Kotaro looked away from the sword and fixed his gaze on him, "Daddy's got a big sword."

Toushiro chuckled, "It may seem big to you, but Hyourimaru's actually a standard sized katana," he got to his feet and stepped over to the barrel, he pulled the nodachi out which was pretty heavy and placed the tip down towards the ground, "See this thing is taller then me. Its a good job really that its made out of wood or it would have been a bit awkward to show you."

He placed the nodachi back inside the barrel and rummaged around for a standard sized katana, "Here's a normal length sword Kotaro, although we tend to call a wooden practice sword a bokken."

"Can I hold it Daddy?" Kotaro asked jumping to his feet.

Toushiro placed the wooden sword down on the ground, he then pulled Hyourimaru's sash over his head, "Come here Kotaro."

Kotaro stepped forward and Toushiro held Hyourimaru out before him with both of his hands, "Hold your hands out palms facing up and spread them out a little bit," Kotaro did as he was told, Toushiro then lowered Hyourimaru so the sheathe was resting over Kotaro's palms, "Can you feel how heavy my sword is little man?"

"Whoa its very heavy Daddy," Kotaro exclaimed despite the fact that Toushiro was holding the majority of the weight.

"Okay let go a second little man," Toushiro then lowered Hyourimaru to the ground, "If you can pick it up, I'll let you hold it."

He stepped away and stood by the barrel, he watched for a few seconds as Kotaro determinedly tried to pick up his sword without much success. While Kotaro was occupied with that task, he rummaged around in the barrel and pulled out a selection of wooden blades. He layed each blade down side by side in a row. The nodachi being the biggest weapon was first, next to it was a standard katana, next there was a wakizashi which was smaller then a katana and finally on the end was a small wooden tanto.

"Daddy I cant pick it up," Kotaro admitted five minutes later.

"I didn't expect you to Kotaro," Toushiro replied warmly, "Come over here little man," Kotaro did as he was told and Toushiro proceeded to showing him the selection of wooden weapons. After he'd explained what each weapon was called and how it was used he said, "Now Kotaro, if you can lift any of these weapons comfortably, I will not only let you hold it, but I will also teach you a beginners kata."

Kotaro's eyes lit up, "Really Daddy?"

"Yes Kotaro really," Toushiro estimated that he had about ten minutes before his advanced class was due to turn up to commence their training, "But you'd best hurry and make your selection, my class will be starting in ten minutes."

Kotaro's eyes went wide and he hurried to look at each blade. After seeing Toushiro lugging the huge nodachi around earlier Kotaro skipped the ridiculously large blade and skipped over to the wooden katana, "Daddy is the wooden one lighter then your real one?"

"Yes little man, give it a try if you want," Toushiro replied knowing full well the wooden blade would still be too heavy for him.

Kotaro wrapped his little hands around the handle and tried to lift it, he'd managed to lift the handle up an inch before he glanced over to Toushiro, "I think its still a bit too heavy for me."

"I know Kotaro, why don't you leave that one and try one of the smaller weapons."

Kotaro abandoned the katana and moved down to the next weapon in the line, the wakizashi. He held the handle with both hands and hoisted it up off the ground, "Oh I can lift it Daddy!" He declared loudly, however the weapon was still too heavy for him. Kotaro stumbled slightly under the weight of it and it sent his balance off and he toppled to the ground. He pushed himself back to his feet and he stared back at Toushiro confused, "Too heavy?"

Toushiro closed his eyes and nodded, "Just because a weapon is right for one person, doesn't automatically make that weapon right for somebody else," Toushiro opened his eyes stalked over to where the small tanto was laying on the ground, "Kotaro what's the difference between yourself and me?"

Kotaro looked down at himself then back to Toushiro, "Our height?" He questioned a little unsure.

"That's right," Toushiro praised, "And what's the difference between that wooden katana and this wooden tanto?"

"Ones bigger then the other?"

"Yes but apart from that, they are exactly the same. Although the tanto is smaller, its still essentially the same as a katana, its just been scaled down to a smaller size," Toushiro scooped up the tanto and walked back over to Kotaro, he then held it out with both hands towards Kotaro, "Take it."

Kotaro held out both of his hands, palms facing up like before and Toushiro placed the wooden weapon in his palms, "How does that feel little man? I bet you can hold it quite comfortably right?"

"Yes!" Kotaro replied delighted.

Toushiro scooped up the wooden katana, "A correctly sized sword like this should always be one third handle and two thirds blade. Just like that little tanto, the overall size is still the same, one third of its length is taken up by the handle and the other two thirds is blade. Which means I can teach you the basics of using a katana, but while you're growing you will just have to use a scaled down version. I'll start you off by using the tanto, then when you've grown a bit I'll upgrade you to a wakizashi, then the katana. Sounds fair to you little man?"

Kotaro perked up, "Daddy you're going to start teaching me how to use a sword?"

"Yes and I've always said if you were to learn how to use one, then it would be me who would teach you. I want you to learn how to use one properly and responsibly. These are tools Kotaro, not toys.

"Oh wow!" Kotaro jumped up and down excitedly, "What are you going to teach me first Daddy? How about a cut or a slash or maybe a stab or something!"

Toushiro stepped forward and pushed Kotaro on his shoulder. As predicted his son lost his footing and went stumbling backwards onto his butt. Kotaro looked up at him shocked, "Daddy?"

"How about we start with the basics Kotaro?" Toushiro leant forward and extended his hand out, Kotaro took it and Toushiro plucked his son off the floor, "I'll start by first teaching you how to hold the sword properly. Then I'll go over the correct stance and then most importantly," Toushiro paused and he caught the look of eager anticipation on Kotaro's face, "You need to learn how to breathe."

Kotaro's face fell in disappointment, "I already know how to breathe Daddy, I've been doing it since birth."

Toushiro chuckled again, "True, but the breathing exercises I'm going to teach you will help you to focus your mind and relax your body. Which are two very important steps if you wish to train in swordsmanship, the same can be said for learning how to use Kido, train in hand to hand combat, even communicating with your Zanpakuto."

Kotaro suddenly went very quiet and Toushiro had noticed, "Something wrong Kotaro?"

Kotaro frowned then looked up at him, "No, I thought I just remembered something, but then I forgot again."

Toushiro cocked his head to one side as he surveyed Kotaro, "It will come back to you little man. So do you want me to show you how to hold a sword properly."

Kotaro brightened up immediately and nodded his little head eagerly.

Toushiro placed his wooden katana to one side and he proceeded to show Kotaro how to hold the little tanto properly, "Firstly your grip on the handle is important, if you're not holding it properly any force striking your blade will force you to drop it. Never grip it with your thumb and forefinger, your hold will be weak and easily broken," Toushiro moved behind Kotaro and directed him in the correct way to hold the sword. Just as he'd predicted the small tanto was the perfect size and in perfect proportion to the rest of Kotaro's tiny body, it was literally a mini katana for a mini man. "Place the little finger of your left hand round the base of the handle, then wrap the rest of your fingers round the remainder of the hilt. Your bottom two fingers should be tight," Once Toushiro was satisfied with Kotaro's left hand placement, he continued on to his right hand, "Your right hand should be just below the guard, and grip it in the same manner as your left. Do you understand Kotaro?"

"I think so Daddy," Kotaro replied.

"Now then, your stance. Having the proper stance is important, your stability depends on it. If your stance is too high you can become unbalanced when moving around, but if its too low moving around becomes difficult."

Toushiro came around to face Kotaro, "Now slide your right foot forward and your left foot back. Your feet should always be shoulder width apart."

Toushiro got to his feet and paced around Kotaro making sure to adjust his form and stance until he was satisfied, "You must stand strong," Without warning Toushiro pushed Kotaro on his shoulder just like before, however this time Kotaro remained on his feet and hardly moved. "Very good," satisfied with his work, Toushiro scooped up the wooden katana and fell into line beside Kotaro.

"Now then Kotaro what I'm about to show you is a basic kata. I want you to follow along my movements, which will be slowed right down. I want you to take your time and I want you to go steady."

Toushiro instructed Kotaro to breathe in deeply through his nose, then out through his mouth. They repeated the breaths a few times then Toushiro began to guide Kotaro slowly through the basic kata of a block and strike sequence. After several minutes of repetition Toushiro noticed that Kotaro's movements became less clumsy and more controlled. He took him through one more sequence then he paused and turned to his side, he then instructed Kotaro to turn to face him, "Very good little man, now when we've finished a training session we face each other and bow."

"Thank you Daddy," Kotaro said quietly.

"Its quite all right Kotaro. Now I have a bit of homework for you."

Kotaro's head shot up and his eyes went wide, "Homework?"

"Don't look so horrified," Toushiro smirked, "I'm going to let you borrow that wooden tanto and I want you to practise the kata I've just shown you. I want you to remember to breathe properly, make sure you are holding the sword properly and that you are in a correct stance."

Kotaro grinned back at him, "Okay Daddy deal."

"And remember, that tanto is a tool, not a toy. If I see you misusing it I will confiscate it from you and that will be the end of our training sessions. Do I make myself clear Kotaro?"

"Yes Daddy, I understand," Kotaro replied sincerely.

Toushiro glanced to the side and noticed for the first time that his advanced class was waiting on the sidelines watching the two of them as they patiently waited for their training session to begin. Toushiro had been so absorbed in teaching Kotaro the basics he'd momentarily forgotten about his next class, "Looks like my next class is here Kotaro, do you remember my rules?"

Kotaro nodded and reached out for Toushiro's hand. Toushiro picked up his own wooden katana and took the wooden tanto from Kotaro and the two of them crossed back over the training yard to where the steps were. Kotaro plopped himself down and Toushiro placed the other wooden weapons back in the barrel, the tanto however he placed down by Kotaro's side, he then picked up Hyourimaru and placed him back over his shoulder. Toushiro then turned to face his advanced class as they filed onto the training yard lining up in three neat orderly rows.

* * *

><p>Rangiku was happily walking along the main walkway heading towards the First division where the SWA had managed to book a room for the meeting. She had been looking forward to seeing everyone again considering that she'd been stuck at home all week recovering and the week prior she'd been away on a mission.<p>

This particular meeting was quite a vital one too, it was where the latest poll results were revealed and they would also find out the latest theme for the next calender to be released. For two whole months prior to the meeting Nanao had remained stubbornly tight lipped about the results and the new calenders theme. Rangiku knew the next few weeks would be rather hectic as the SWA mobilized and began the hard task of collecting the all important photos required for the calenders publication. To say she was bursting with excitement and enthusiasm was a huge understatement.

So when the lone butterfly came fluttering down towards her bearing its message, it was understandable that she felt completely disappointed.

The message had been short and to the point. The SWA meeting had been cancelled.

Rangiku knew the only person who had the authority to cancel the meeting was Nanao. What she didn't know was why. Nanao wouldn't just cancel a meeting for no reason, especially a SWA meeting.

Standing in the middle of the walkway she knew she had two options. The first option was that she could just turn right back around and choose to head back home to Toushiro and Kotaro. Or she could go with option two, head over to the Eighth division and drop in to see Nanao and Shunsui.

She quickly sought out both her friends energy signatures to make sure that they were both at the Eighth rather then off somewhere on a mission. After locating both of them within the division she'd made her mind up. With Toushiro looking after Kotaro it meant she didn't have to worry about watching what she was saying. Toushiro had expressed his opinion several times for her to not get involved, he reckoned if they were having relationship troubles it was best to keep out of it and let the two deal with it themselves.

Rangiku however thought differently. So with her mind completely made up she stepped into shunpo and headed back, taking a detour towards the Eighth division. If she couldn't get answers from anybody else, then she would just go directly to the source.

* * *

><p>I hoped you enjoyed this chapter. Its made me realise just how much I miss not being able to do my martial arts anymore. I was literally training for my black belt grading when I had the accident. Well anyway, I'll be busy working on chapter 20. Rangiku's finally on the case and all the explosive scenes I've got planned can finally start to make an appearance. I'm just as excited about writing them as I am about finally revealing them to you. ^_^<p> 


	20. Chapter 20

Surprise! That's right Chapter 20 is already to be posted. I've had this scene in my head for three months, so naturally it was ready to come tumbling out. Thank you all for reviewing the last chapter I'm happy you enjoyed it. So on that note Happy Reading!

* * *

><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 20<p>

Touching down outside the Eighths main entrance Rangiku was immediately struck by how different the place felt. The Eighth was generally a happy, vibrant and welcoming place, as you stepped through the gates it felt like you were being hugged and invited to join the party.

Yet this time as she strolled through the gates the whole place felt drab and miserable, almost like the sun had been withdrawn for winter, leaving behind a gloomy, empty and cold feeling. It felt like the life had been sucked right out of the place, this worried Rangiku a lot.

There didn't appear to be many Shinigami milling around like usual, but Rangiku reckoned if she had a stroll around the place, maybe head over to the office, she would surely run into someone sooner or later.

Her theory had proven to be correct when ten minutes later, as she was passing by the mess hall she heard several voices chatting away and gossiping inside. Perfect she thought, she would go inside and politely ask the Shinigami if they knew the whereabouts of either Nanao or Shunsui. Generally she would just head straight for the office or Shunsui's home like she belonged there, but she was genuinely concerned about the bleakness of the place and so she wanted to get an idea whether the rest of the division was being affected and if they were aware of what was going on between Shunsui and Nanao. It was a well known fact that if there were tension between the Captain and Lieutenant of a division, then that tension would generally spread to everyone else within the division.

It had happened a few times before between Toushiro and herself, especially before they had gotten together. Even a few times after for that matter.

Rangiku stepped through the door of the mess hall and upon entering the room an unnatural hush descended over the occupants as they ceased their conversations and all heads turned to face her.

One brave soul stepped forward with his friend by his side, "Err hello Lieutenant Matsumoto, how.."

The young man was promptly cut off by his friend who elbowed him full force in his ribs, "Lieutenant Hitsugaya you idiot," the friend corrected.

"Right Lieutenant Hitsugaya, my apologies," The man mumbled quietly as he massaged his ribs.

His friend took over, "I'm sorry, do you need any help Lieutenant?" He asked pleasantly. The majority of the Eighths members were aware of the deep bond of friendship she had with their leaders.

"Oh I'm just passing by," she replied in her warm bubbly manner, "I was just heading to the office to see Nanao."

By now the two division members had been joined by several others who were in the mess hall creating a small crowd. One voice that belonged to a young girl spoke up from the back, "Er Lieutenant, I don't think Lieutenant Ise's in the office today."

Rangiku felt momentarily surprised when she heard that, it wasn't like Nanao to skip out on work like that. Shunsui yes, Nanao no.

"In fact," the girl continued, "I don't think she's been in at all for the last week."

And that was just down right odd in Rangiku's opinion, "Well do any of you know where she will be then?"

The small crowd shook their heads and made some non-committal sounds, "To be honest Lieutenant Hitsugaya," another guy spoke up from the back, "I don't think anyone's seen Lieutenant Ise for about two weeks now. Its only the last few days we've suspected that she hasn't been visiting the office at all."

"Yeah! He's right," a tall woman spoke up, "We tend to naturally assume that the Lieutenant's busy in the office when we don't see much of her. We try not to disturb her if we can help it."

"Wait wait!" Rangiku cut in before anyone else did, "You said its only been in the last few days that you suspected she hasn't been visiting the office right?" They all nodded in agreement and Rangiku continued on, "So what exactly made you realise this? How did you reach that conclusion?"

"Well there's been no signs of life in the office, the door is locked, there's no lights on, all the blinds are shut. Even the paperworks starting to pile up outside seeing as no one can gain access."

"I see," Rangiku replied pinching her lip between her thumb and forefinger, "What about the paperwork that would've been delivered before the office had been locked down? What happened with that?"

All she received were blank stares, it seemed nobody knew anything. It certainly was frustrating, "Okay then has anybody seen Captain Kyouraku around?"

"We haven't seen much of the Captain either to be honest," The tall woman answered again.

"When were the last time Captain Kyouraku and Nanao were both seen together?" Rangiku asked feeling increasingly uneasy.

Again all she got was silence, "When was the last time any of you saw either one of them?"

"Well," A large man from the back pushed his way to the front of the crowd, "We didn't exactly see them, but we did all feel them. It was just over a week ago. It felt like they were having quite a serious fight and since then I cant recall seeing either one of them."

Rangiku frowned, things just kept getting stranger and stranger, "So whose been in charge? Whose running the division and issuing you with orders?"

"Nobody," the large man answered, "Lieutenant Ise pretty much runs everything around here."

"Yeah and we know she's not been around because everything's starting to fall to pieces," The young girl said which got several nods of agreement.

"What about your Third, Fourth and Fifth seats, aren't they taking charge of the situation?" Rangiku asked, she was having to force herself to remain calm and not get angry. Clearly Shunsui and Nanao were having serious issues if their own division members admitted that things were falling apart.

There were a few seconds silence then the crowd all shifted to one side. Rangiku glanced through the gap in the crowd to see the said seated officers all passed out cold with a large collection of empty sake bottles littering the floor and table.

"So Captain Kyouraku and Nanao have apparently had some sort of a bust up shall we say?" Rangiku thought out aloud, which earned her several nods of agreement, "Since then nobody has seen them around at all and now the office has been locked down, plus no-one has issued you any further orders."

"That pretty much sums it all up Lieutenant Hitsugaya."

"Right then," Rangiku suddenly perked up and clapped her hands together, "Don't you guys worry one bit okay. "I'll see if I can figure out what's happening. So if you all don't mind I'll just go ahead and visit Nanao's office," she figured a little show of positivity would help reassure the obviously agitated group.

"Sure go ahead," The tall guy said, "It doesn't seem like anyone else is going to do anything about it."

So after a few more words and questions Rangiku bid farewell to the despondent group of division members and hurried on over to Shunsui and Nanao's shared office. The whole time she'd been keeping her eyes peeled for a flash of pink haori from up above on the rooftops, just in case Shunsui had decided to take a nap up there.

Arriving at the office Rangiku went straight up to the door and tapped lightly on it. Just as she'd expected she received no reply and when she leant closer to the door to have a listen, she heard nothing on the other side. Not only was the door locked, but a cleverly disguised kido barrier had been placed around it to deter anyone from trying to gain entry.

Rangiku however was even more determined to get inside, why bother placing a kido barrier on a locked door if there was nothing to hide. She placed her palm flat against the door and poured a little spiritual pressure into it. It wasn't a terribly complex kido barrier, just enough to keep anyone below the level of a Lieutenant out.

Once the barrier had dropped out she then used the tip of Haineko to prise the lock open, she didn't think giving it a good kick was particularly subtle. Once the lock clicked open she slid the door aside and stepped inside.

Rangiku was shocked by what her eyes were seeing. The usually immaculate office was a complete mess and the amount of paperwork that had been stuffed into the room was enough to induce her with nightmares for months.

She wondered over to Nanao's desk and started rooting through the piles that'd been placed there. It was astounding to see that at least two solid weeks worth of paperwork had been left untouched. One particular pile had been completed by Nanao, however from what Rangiku could make out and even though she wasn't an expert on paperwork, much of the information Nanao had entered was incorrect.

Another pile had been completed and at a quick glance it all looked correct, but the thing that was off about it, was that it should have been handed in at least two weeks ago, right around the time Rangiku had left for the mission to the Living World. What was going on here? Rangiku desperately wanted to see Nanao, clearly something was terribly wrong with her.

She stepped away from Nanao's desk and walked over to the couch and flopped herself down on it. She closed her eyes and started to tune out everything that was around her. Usually picking out Nanao's energy signature was easy for her, but she had to admit, since stepping foot inside the Eighth division, she'd been struggling to get a fix on Nanao. She couldn't even detect Shunsui, but that was pretty normal for him.

She gave up after several minutes and opened her eyes again noticing for the first time the splatter of dried blood caked on the floorboards near her feet, "Oh my-"

"You shouldn't be here Ran-chan."

She gasped and jumped a mile, sending a pile of paperwork that'd been stacked up next to the couch, crashing to the floor. Individual pages scattered and fluttered all over the place just adding to the already disorganized mess.

She spun on her heel and came face to face with Shunsui, she never heard him arrive. He could have been here the whole time for that matter hiding in the shadows and she'd never have known.

"Don't say that Shun-kun," She looked him over but due to the closed blinds much of his face was in shadow, but the one thing she did notice was that he was only wearing the black part of his uniform, not a single haori was in sight, heck he wasn't even wearing his customary straw hat and his hair was falling over his shoulders in loose curls, "I only stopped by to visit you and Nanao."

Shunsui wordlessly stalked over to the office door and slid it shut with a snap. He relocked the door then placed his palm flat against the wood, recreating the barrier she'd broken only moments before. Once that small task was complete he crossed back over to her and reached an hand out, gripping her upper arm.

Confused she was just about to ask what he was doing when her whole world briefly turned on its head before righting itself again. Blinking a few times in the sudden bright light and waiting for the disorientation to pass, she soon realised Shunsui had shunpoed them away from the office and a quick glance around her confirmed that they were now on Shunsui's porch which over looked his immaculate garden.

"Jeez a bit of warning next time Shunsui," she admonished. She looked up from the ground and her view was blocked by the large solid form of Shunsui's back. She got the feeling he was trying to avoid looking at her.

"I figured it wouldn't be much longer until you stopped by Ran-chan," Shunsui said in an unnaturally sad voice, "I figured once you'd been discharged from the Fourth it would've been about a week or so."

"Are you okay?" She stepped forward and reached her hand out to hold onto his elbow, "You don't sound like your normal self." She could have sworn by the tone of his voice that he was on the verge of tears. She knew it sounded crazy, to suggest that one of the toughest and strongest Captains in the Gotei 13 would succumb to the act of crying.

Shunsui took in a deep breath and released it in one long sigh, within seconds his whole demeanour had changed and he turned to face Rangiku with a huge happy smile plastered on his face, "Ran-chan, its so nice to see you back," He engulfed her in a massive bear hug, "I've missed you."

Rangiku was painfully aware that Shunsui's abrupt change in mood was just a ploy to divert her attention away from him for a moment. She'd inadvertently caught him whilst his guard had been down and his show of affection was just to give him a few vital seconds to pull his mask back on. Which was fine by her, however she wasn't going to let him avoid answering her questions though. She had a feeling Shunsui already knew this, or he wouldn't have bothered bringing her to his home.

Shunsui sighed heavily again and dropped his chin to rest on Rangiku's shoulder, "I know why you're here Ran-chan," he admitted.

"The point is Shun-kun," Rangiku automatically ran her hand up and down Shunsui's back, just like she would do to Kotaro when she was trying to calm and soothe him, "Are you willing to let me help?"

"Ran-chan, I NEED your help," Shunsui's deep voice rumbled in her ear, "Nanao... I just don't know what to do, to help her. I cant get her to open up to me."

"I've heard some vicious rumours Shunsui," she cringed when she felt Shunsui tense up in her arms.

"Do you believe them?" Shunsui asked wearily.

"I find them hard to believe actually," Rangiku paused while she considered whether to complete her sentence or not, "Yet. Don't all rumours start with at least a tiny grain of truth in them?"

"So they do," Shunsui remained quiet for several minutes, in which time Rangiku seriously worried about whether she'd just offended him. Shunsui then straightened up and moved away from Rangiku, he walked over to where two cushions were placed side by side on the porch. He sunk down onto one of them then he patted the other indicating for Rangiku to sit with him. Once she'd settled herself down Shunsui asked, "So what have you heard Ran-chan?"

"Well," She sighed, "Firstly you should know that Toshi seriously doesn't want me getting involved. Especially since its obvious that you and Captain Ukitake are.." she trailed off unsure whether to continue.

"Are what Ran-chan?"

"Well I don't know really, Toshi just mentioned that there seemed to be a bit of tension between the two of you in the Fourth. He suspected you'd been fighting but he really didn't want to get involved."

Shunsui closed his eyes, "Toushiro's a good man, but just to clarify a few things for you Ran-chan. Me and Juu were not fighting... We may have been arguing slightly, but we were by no means physically fighting."

"Really?" She asked surprised, "Then why did Toshi mention that you both had busted noses?"

"Oh," Shunsui replied as he scratched at his chin, "Well I guess I did kinda punch him in the nose a little. It was just once though."

"What!" Rangiku cried out, "You punched Captain Ukitake in the nose?"

Shunsui's temper flared up slightly "He deserved it. I was not going to stand there, being accused of something that I wouldn't dream of ever doing, by my best friend of all people."

"Okay okay," Rangiku held her hands out in front of her, "Don't get angry, I'm just trying to make sense of what I've heard. That's all."

"Shunsui," Rangiku decided that maybe a change of subject was in order, Shunsui glanced at her and she was pretty sure he knew what was coming, "Where's Nanao-chan? How come hardly anyone's seen her lately? Is she okay?"

"Ran-chan," She caught the flash of pain that crossed over Shunsui's face and he sighed a wary sigh, "I.. Nanao she... I..." He paused feeling frustrated, "I suppose these 'vicious' rumours you mentioned are about me and Nanao-chan right?"

"One or two," she reached out and grasped Shunsui's hand giving it a little squeeze, "The point is I don't care about what other people 'think' is happening between you two. I just want to know that my two best friends are okay, and if you're not then I just want to be able to help you out."

"I bet Juu's already given you his version of events and what he 'thinks' is happening between us," Shunsui replied moodily.

"Actually you're wrong Shunsui," Rangiku saw the doubtful expression on his face, "Neither me or Toushiro know why, but it seems that Captain Ukitake is avoiding us for some reason."

"Why would he be avoiding you two?" Shunsui's eyes widened at that little tidbit of information, before adding, "Not that I care about him or anything."

"Do you seriously mean that Shunsui, or are you just angry with him?" Rangiku asked softly.

"No, I didn't mean that Ran-chan, I'm just a little angry with him that's all," he closed his eyes and shook his head, "I guess this is the one time I really need him, but he's really let me down."

As they fell into silence something clicked in Rangiku's mind. Clearly whatever had been happening between Shunsui and Nanao, Shunsui naturally would've spoken to Ukitake about it. But for Shunsui to say that he felt let down by Ukitake, either meant that Ukitake couldn't or wouldn't help him out, or that maybe Ukitake wasn't fully aware of the whole problem. Which would explain Shunsui's earlier comment about what Ukitake 'thinks' is happening.

Rangiku sighed inwardly, sometimes Shunsui could be a real hard nut to crack.

"Shunsui am I correct in assuming, that Captain Ukitake doesn't know the full extent of whatever problem you and Nanao seem to be going through?"

"You're assumptions would be correct," Shunsui answered without opening his eyes.

"Well, why is that?" She asked as she watched his face carefully for a reaction, "You're best friends and you tell each other everything. So why is it in this instance, Captain Ukitake doesn't know the full story? Because I find it hard to believe that he wouldn't help you out if you were having problems. I mean that's why you're angry at him and why he's let you down, because he's not helping you right?"

"Wrong Ran-chan," Shunsui replied rather bluntly, "I'm angry with Juushiro because he seems to think I'm hurting Nanao-chan," Shunsui rose to his feet and crossed his arms over his chest.

Rangiku got up too and stepped over to him, "Why would he even think that Shun-kun?"

He turned around and rested his large hands on her shoulders, he bent down slightly so their faces were on a level. Rangiku's eyes widened in shock when she saw his face up close. Since she'd started talking to him she hadn't really looked at him properly.

His eyes, usually so bright and full of mischief seemed dull and tired which were accompanied by dark circles underneath. On his left temple was a mark from a recent cut and the skin down one side of his face was a yellowy green colour, a definite sign of fading bruises. But what was even more noticeable was the split lip he was sporting which seemed to be only hours old.

"Shunsui what happened to you?" she placed her hand on the side of his face where the bruises were fading. So it were true what Toushiro had said, Shunsui had been beaten up, "Who did this to you? And what about Nanao? Where is she? Is she hurt too?"

"Ran-chan," Shunsui began, she could tell he was feeling reluctant.

"Shun-kun, whatever it is you can tell me," she encouraged, "I'm not here to judge, I'm here to help you and Nanao."

"Will you keep an open mind Rangiku?"

"Of course, but you'll have to tell me everything. How can I possibly help out if I don't know the full story?" She gave him a pointed stare.

Shunsui pulled away from Rangiku and turned his back on her, "Firstly Ran-chan, most importantly you must understand that I would never intentionally hurt Nanao-chan."

Rangiku already knew this but chose to remain quiet rather then voicing her opinion on how she already knew this. Shunsui was obviously reluctant to talk to anyone about his troubles and now that he was actually opening up to her, she didn't want to interrupt him.

"That same night you and Toushiro left for your mission, I was out in the Rukongai. I wanted a quiet drink so I chose one of the bars I knew many Shinigami avoided due to the hostile locals."

Rangiku nodded, "I know which bar you mean, remember you took me there once and we ended up in that bar brawl."

"Yeah, that one," Shunsui rubbed warily at his temple, "I've told Nanao-chan countless times never to venture out there to pick me up. But she did."

Rangiku already knew what had transpired, Nanao had told her briefly about it in her message. Shunsui gave her his version of events on what he felt at the bar and what he saw once he got to her. She also knew about Nanao's strange reaction afterwards, but since then she was in the dark. Now it was up to Shunsui to fill her in.

"I knew she wasn't herself Ran-chan and since that night everything's been messed up between us. I don't think she's even aware of it herself. The mood swings, she wont sleep, I cant remember the last time she actually ate a proper meal."

Rangiku frowned when Shunsui began to talk really fast, jumping from one thing to the other, she could tell he was getting worked up about it, "Shunsui, can we back up a little bit? Nanao sent me a message the next day."

Shunsui spun around and stumbled over to her, "What did she say?"

"It wasn't much, just that she hadn't been feeling well BEFORE she came out to fetch you. Then a little about what happened and then she just mentioned that she was finding it a bit difficult being around you."

"She told you that? Nanao-chan actually said that?" Shunsui was gripping her shoulders again, "Did she say anything else?"

"No, I've not heard anything from her since then," Rangiku sighed exasperated, "I'm worried about her Shunsui."

"Well, since that night things have been difficult between us. First Nanao said she felt fine," Shunsui proceeded to tell her about their visit to Ukitake's place the day after. He told her about the strange fluctuations in Nanao's spiritual pressure, how Nanao had started to grow distant towards him and how he'd camped in the office and found her wandering in half asleep later in the night.

"I scooped her up Ran-chan, brought her home and put her to bed," Shunsui took a massive deep breath, "And that's when things pretty much started to turn crazy for me."

"Crazy how?" Rangiku noticed how Shunsui's hands were clenched tightly into fists, she knew she was getting close to uncovering the truth.

Shunsui let out a frustrated growl and turned his back on Rangiku, "Nanao had a particularly bad nightmare, it were the same night you returned from the World of the Living. Her reiatsu was flying out of control, she were kicking and screaming. That's how my nose got busted, she were flailing around so bad and I had no choice but to pin her down, just so she wouldn't hurt herself. I was worried about attracting unwanted attention so I raised my own pressure to drown hers out. But there's something not quite right with her reiatsu Ran-chan, there's something dark about it and whatever it is... it hates me."

"Hates you?" Rangiku asked confused.

Shunsui nodded, "Whenever I try to help Nanao-chan, it reacts and tries to fight me."

"Shun-kun," Rangiku stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her head against his back.

"She were just waking up and she looked in a terrible state almost like she were traumatized, but I still kept her pinned down just in case, and unfortunately that's when Juu arrived."

"Oh my.. He took one look and thought.." Rangiku begun.

"Yeah, pretty much. He thought we were having a fight and rushed over from his home, he felt my reiatsu dominating Nanao's. The first thing he saw when he got there was me pinning Nanao down and Nanao screaming her head off."

"I would never do that to Nanao-chan, I would never do that to any lady period and Juu knows that. But its just the fact that he implied it Ran-chan. That he would think so little of me," Shunsui's hands came to rest on top of Rangiku's.

"Hey its okay Shunsui, its obviously just been a big misunderstanding. I assume you took Nanao to the Fourth?"

"She looked very ill, she even fainted. Since that night when she came out to the bar, I've wanted her to go to the Fourth just to get checked over, but she wouldn't. Then when her reiatsu started going out of control I was too worried to take her in case they thought she was too unstable and decided to lock her away. But I reluctantly took her to get looked at anyway, she was clearly ill."

"What did you find out?"

"Its confusing because Isane picked out that Nanao was showing all the classic signs of stress and exhaustion. That she's deprived of sleep and slightly malnourished. Yet when I asked Isane to check Nanao's Spiritual pressure, the results came back fine despite being slightly low which was put down to Nanao not eating sufficiently."

"So Isane didn't even pick up on this strange darkness in Nanao's reiatsu that you mentioned?"

"No nothing at all. Its like I said Ran-chan, it seems to react to me and I'm not sure if Nanao-chan is fully aware of it. I don't even know if it reacts towards anyone else. Since then I've been keeping Nanao here, Isane told me she needed plenty of rest and relaxation to recover. But that's where I've hit another problem."

"What problem would that be Shunsui?" Rangiku asked giving his waist a squeeze.

"Since Nanao's had that nightmare she's been avoiding going to sleep. Which is only making her feel even more stressed out and exhausted. She's got no appetite, I cant remember the last time she actually ate a proper meal and the only thing she seems to consume is coffee. I keep trying to talk to her, to find out why she is so scared to sleep, but she just wont open up to me. I feel awful Ran-chan because I have to resort to using Inemuri to force her just to get some sleep, and when she wakes up she's practically having a panic attack. I hate having to do that to her."

Rangiku sighed, "Well that explains why nobody has seen Nanao for awhile. Did she cancel the SWA meeting herself or were you responsible for that?"

"Guilty as charged," Shunsui admitted, "Rangiku she's not fit to be going to meetings. She needs to sleep, if I even take my eyes off her for one minute she's sneaking off to the office to do paperwork so she can stay awake. Normally I wouldn't mind but the last batch she did, she filled everything in wrong. Then there's the issue with her reiatsu, I cant leave her on her own."

"Okay so that's cleared up why you and Captain Ukitake aren't speaking, but I think sorting Nanao out is our main priority. There's just one thing left thought Shunsui."

"What's that Ran-chan?" He replied warily.

"I heard from Toshi, who heard from both Captain Ukitake and Unohana about your so called accident. They all agreed that something slightly more happened to you then simply slipping over in the bathroom. They seemed to think that its likely you'd been beaten up," she noticed that he'd gone as still as stone in her arms, "Will you tell me what happened?"

Shunsui let out a strangled cry of rage then pushed himself out of Rangiku's hold, "I cannot believe those two," he yelled angrily, "Whatever happened to discretion? First Juu accuses me of beating up and raping Nanao," He paced angrily up and down the porch, "And now Retsu...Whatever happened to doctor/patient confidentiality?"

Shunsui lashed out angrily, his target was a wooden fence post which his fist smashed cleanly through sending splinters flying everywhere. He then sunk down to his knees breathing heavily, Rangiku cautiously went over to him and rested her hands on his shoulders, "I'm sorry Shun-kun, you don't have to tell me if it upsets you."

"It feels like everyone's turned against me Rangiku, and they wondered why I didn't tell them the full story."

"I think I understand now. You didn't tell them because you're protecting Nanao."

"I told you already Ran-chan that there's something wrong with Nanao-chan's reiatsu and it reacts to me, It hates me. Its true I was beaten up, but it were only because I refused to lift a hand against Nanao and fight back."

Rangiku gasped loudly, "Wait it was Nanao that beat you up?"

"She wasn't aware of what she were doing Rangiku I'm sure of it, this dark presense in her reiatsu, I can only describe it as possession. It was like Nanao-chan had been possessed and whatever it was, it was using her body to attack me. There was no way I could've fought back, anything I did would've just hurt Nanao-chan. I told you I would never do anything to intentionally hurt her, I'm completely powerless against her. What's worst is that Nanao-chan knows nothing about it, she has no memory about that morning."

"And you couldn't tell Captain Ukitake and Unohana the full story because-" Rangiku began but Shunsui promptly cut her off.

"Because of the circumstances surrounding the attack. Firstly Nanao's reiatsu had become unstable, that's enough to have her locked away in a confinement cell in the Fourth. They say its for the Shinigami's own safety but at the end of the day, its still being imprisoned. Secondly, she attacked me. Attacking a Captain of the Gotei 13 is a crime punishable by automatic demotion and dismissal. What they don't tell you however, is that if someone's mad enough to attack a Captain then that person is automatically considered to be too dangerous to be allowed to roam free, so the where do they end up?"

Rangiku knew exactly where he meant, "The Maggots Nest."

Shunsui nodded, "Exactly, and thirdly its obvious Nanao is being possessed in some way, again something like that, its an automatic one way ticket to the Maggots Nest."

Shunsui finally stood up and turned to face her, the mask he'd pulled on earlier had finally fallen away and Rangiku could clearly see the stress and pain in his eyes. She pulled him into a hug squeezing him tightly.

"I don't want to lose Nanao-chan, but I just don't know how to help her. I cant leave her on her own for too long. She always wakes up panicking and calling for me."

"I'm curious Shunsui, have you been back to the Rukongai since that night? Yes Nanao was feeling a bit ill before she came out to you, but I'm guessing whatever that guy did to dampen her spiritual pressure must have something to do with her system going crazy."

"I know Ran-chan, all I've wanted to do since that night is to go back and hunt those guys down. Its likely they wouldn't tell me anything but its still worth a shot. Its just the fact that I cant leave Nanao on her own that's been stopping me from going ahead with it."

"Well I'm here," Rangiku smiled softly at him, "So what's stopping you from going now?"

She could see Shunsui considering her words, "Nanao's not due to wake up for another hour," he rubbed at his chin absent mindedly, "Point is Ran-chan if I'm not back in time and Nanao happens to wake up badly, will you be able to handle her? I still don't know whether that dark reiatsu inside her reacts just to me or if it reacts to anyone else."

"I'm sure I'll be fine Shunsui, the main issue here is that we find out what's making Nanao sick."

Shunsui stared at her for a few seconds before he nodded, "Come with me Ran-chan," he then led her into his house and down the hallway, stopping off in his bedroom.

Stepping through the door Rangiku caught her first sight of Nanao. She wondered over to the bed and sat herself down on the edge. It was strange seeing Nanao without her glasses on and her hair down, looking closely at her face Rangiku could tell that she hadn't been eating properly. Her face seemed a lot thinner then usual and even in the semi lit room she could tell how pale her face was, which contrasted horribly with the dark bags under her eyes.

She reached a hand out and grasped Nanao's, she was struck by how cold she felt to her touch. She looked around her and saw a blanket that'd been folded up on a nearby chair. She got up and picked it up then tossed it over Nanao's sleeping form.

Shunsui came back into the room with his two haori's in their rightful place over his shoulders. His twin swords were tucked into his sash at his waist and he placed his customary straw hat on his head, "Thank you Rangiku, I'll be back as soon as possible."

He then bent down and placed a hand on Nanao's cheeks, leaning in he brushed his lips against hers, "I'll be back soon Nanao-chan don't you worry, Ran-chan will be here looking after you while I'm gone."

There was an odd crackle in the air and Shunsui pulled away from Nanao pretty quickly, as a static charge ran through her body, he glanced at Rangiku and said, "That tends to happen quite a bit when I try to kiss her."

He straightened up and after one final glance at Nanao, he bid farewell to Rangiku and swept out the room.


	21. Chapter 21

Hello guys, I'm happy that you all enjoyed the last two chapters. Thank you very much for all your reviews and comments. I'm considering whether or not to write a bleach Christmas special fic. If I do it may effect when the next chapter may be posted. I'm not sure yet. I'll wait and see what you guys think after reading this chapter :O

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 21<p>

Two hours. Rangiku glanced at the clock ticking away on the bedside table for the umpteenth time. What was taking him so long? Shunsui had left two hours ago and he still hadn't returned, surely it shouldn't be taking him this long? She felt worried and she seriously hoped that he hadn't run into any trouble.

So far Nanao hadn't woken up yet, despite Shunsui's prediction that she would be asleep for at least another hour. Rangiku had been keeping a close eye on her and once or twice Nanao had shown signs of growing restless, yet she had remained asleep. At one point it looked like Nanao was shivering in her sleep so Rangiku had placed an extra blanket over her only to find that Nanao's skin was burning up. The first thing Rangiku had done, was to grab a cloth and dampen it with cold water and place it over Nanao's forehead.

She had no problem with looking after Nanao, after all Nanao had taken care of her countless times over the years whenever she'd come crashing into Nanao's quarters unannounced at stupid o' clock in the morning. Nanao had always been nice about it and helped Rangiku to bed despite her drunken behaviour.

Nanao made some small noise of discomfort and Rangiku twisted around on the edge of the bed to look at her. Rangiku could see that Nanao had a scowl on her face and wondered whether her friend was beginning to have a nightmare of some sort.

Rangiku placed her palm against Nanao's cheek and peeled the damp cloth off Nanao's forehead, she could see a few beads of sweat dotting her face. Nanao shifted in her sleep, her hands fisted into the bedsheets and her head rolled to one side. A small distressed moan escaped from her lips and the rest of her body seemed to be trying to twist away from whatever was haunting her sleep.

"Nanao," Rangiku called softly as she placed both her palms against Nanao's cheeks, "Its okay you just need to wake up."

Nanao's hands came up and latched tightly onto Rangiku's wrists and her legs began to flail and kick about. Her chest was heaving and a strangled cry filled the room.

"Shh come on Nanao, please wake up for me."

It was as if Nanao had heard Rangiku's request, her eyes suddenly flew wide open and Nanao's loud scream filled the room. The hands that had been latched onto Rangiku's wrist were suddenly flailing and trying to push her away instead. Nanao was writhing and trying to twist away from Rangiku in a blind panic.

"Nanao!" Rangiku called loudly, trying to grab her attention so she could calm her down, "I'm not trying to hurt you, will you calm down?"

It took a few minutes for Nanao's initial panic to pass and once she'd realised where she was and who Rangiku was she soon stopped struggling against Rangiku and instead she flopped back heavily against her pillows, while slamming her eyes shut and panting heavily.

"Nanao?" Rangiku questioned as she placed her hand against the side of Nanao's neck, "Are you feeling okay?"

"Rangiku," Nanao gasped out, her voice was hoarse from where she'd been screaming, "What are you doing here?" She asked opening her eyes which darted from side to side nervously, "Where's Shunsui?"

"Shh just breathe honey," Rangiku soothed, "You're a little disorientated."

Nanao draped her arm over her eyes, "What's going on..."

Rangiku frowned and tilted her head to one side as she observed Nanao, It was quite disconcerting to see Nanao in such a nervous, dishevelled state and so unlike herself. Once she were satisfied that Nanao had calmed down somewhat Rangiku helped ease her into a sitting position, reaching around Nanao's back she made sure to readjust the pillows.

"Rangiku, where's Shunsui?" Nanao asked quietly.

"He just needed to run out somewhere," Rangiku didn't think telling her exactly where Shunsui had gone was a good idea at present, "I'm sure he'll be back soon."

Nanao turned her face away from Rangiku unable to meet her eye, "I see," she replied her voice hitching unexpectedly.

"Oh Nanao look at me," Rangiku gently cupped Nanao's chin and turned her so she could see her face, "You don't have to hide your tears from me," she pulled Nanao into a hug who buried her face into Rangiku's shoulder, "I know things have been hard for you lately."

"How do you know that?" Nanao's muffled voice came from Rangiku's shoulder.

"I had a good talk with Shunsui before he left," Rangiku could feel Nanao trembling in her arms, "He told me you've been feeling unwell."

"How much did he tell you?" Nanao enquired, Rangiku thought she detected a hint of alarm in Nanao's voice.

"Oh you know," Rangiku replied in a cheerful tone and pulling out of their hug, "Just that you've been feeling kinda stressed out, exhausted and a little bit ill," Shunsui had warned Rangiku that he didn't think Nanao was fully aware of how bad she'd been and Rangiku knew it wasn't her place to say. She planted her palm flat against Nanao's forehead, "See you're burning up honey. Don't worry I'll take care of you till Shunsui returns."

"Did he say where he were going?" Nanao's brow creased into a frown, "I cant feel his reiatsu anywhere."

That was strange Rangiku thought, she'd kept a constant lock on Shunsui's reiatsu since he'd been gone and she could feel him just fine, she could tell he was still out in the Rukongai. She only hoped that he was actually gathering information and hadn't succumbed to having a 'few drinks'. If that was the case she would strangle him when he returned, "He didn't say exactly where he were going, I bet he's just got a tight hold on his reiatsu today."

Nanao pushed the bed covers to one side and swung her legs over the side of the bed, Rangiku noticed how Nanao's sleeping robe was hanging loosely off her frame. Shunsui hadn't been kidding when he'd mentioned that Nanao had hardly been eating.

"Nanao shouldn't you stay in bed?" Rangiku exclaimed as Nanao pushed herself unsteadily to her feet.

"I'm just going to the bathroom," Nanao replied a little annoyed, Rangiku knew Nanao hated it when people fussed over her.

"Oh I see, I'm sorry," Rangiku watched as she slowly crossed the room heading for the bathroom swaying slightly as she went.

Once Nanao had shut the door Rangiku summoned a hell butterfly and quietly relayed the message to Shunsui that Nanao had woken up. Just as it'd fluttered out the room and out of sight Nanao emerged from the bathroom.

Nanao had only made it halfway across the room when she suddenly lost her balance and started staggering to one side. Rangiku shot up from the bed and steadied her before she could actually crash to the floor, "Nanao?"

"I'm fine, I just went a little dizzy Rangiku," Nanao allowed Rangiku to steer her back to the bed.

"I know just what you need Nanao," Rangiku sat down next to Nanao and draped her arm around her shoulders, "I'll make you a nice cup of tea and whip you up something to eat. What do you say?"

"Thanks, but I'm really not hungry."

"At least have a little something," Rangiku persisted, she wasn't happy at all with Nanao's current state.

"I said I'm not hungry Rangiku!" Nanao snapped back angrily.

Rangiku was astonished by the sudden switch in Nanao's mood. Nanao realising that she'd just bitten Rangiku's head off, slumped forward and buried her face in her hands. Her long black hair cascaded over her shoulders creating a curtain around her face. "I'm so sorry Rangiku," she sighed heavily, "I don't know what's wrong with me lately," Nanao lifted her head and turned to face Rangiku, "I feel like I'm going crazy."

"Its okay Nanao," Rangiku rose from the bed and stepped in front of Nanao, she rested her hands against Nanao's shoulders and gently pushed and guided her to lay back down on the bed. She stroked a few stray strands of black hair away from Nanao's forehead, "You don't need to apologise to me," Rangiku knelt down beside the bed and Nanao turned onto her side to face her.

"I feel like I'm a horrible person," Rangiku saw Nanao's eyes shining with unshed tears, "It will only be a matter of time before Shunsui realises this and decides to leave me."

"Shunsui will not leave you," Rangiku said matter-of-factly, "He loves you Nanao, and he really cares for you. The last thing he would do is leave you."

"But how do you know that!" Nanao was beginning to grow agitated again. She tried to sit back up but Rangiku pushed her back down gently.

"I just know," Rangiku replied softly, "Now you stay here and rest Nanao, I'll just be down the hallway in the kitchen," She made to brush a strand of hair out of Nanao's face, however when Rangiku's palm neared her face, Nanao flinched away. Noticing this Rangiku couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I just thought for a moment there, that you were going to force me to sleep," Nanao quickly averted her gaze, unable to meet her eye, "I don't want to go to sleep Rangiku."

"I'm not going to force you to sleep honey," Rangiku replied tilting her head to one side. Shunsui had mentioned that Nanao had been avoiding sleep and that he'd been using Inemuri, a technique where a person knocks the victim unconscious by placing their palm in front of their face, literally forcing them into a slumber. She understood why Shunsui was performing it on Nanao. She desperately needed to rest in order to overcome her exhaustion and recover her spiritual pressure levels. However looking at Nanao now, it was pretty obvious she felt very agitated at the prospect of being forced to sleep again. Rangiku had a hunch that while Shunsui's intentions were good, she thought that maybe Shunsui was doing more harm then good. If Nanao truly feared going to sleep, then wouldn't that just cause her more stress and anxiety in the long run? And wouldn't that explain why Nanao refuses to open up to him about why she's avoiding sleep, especially if Shunsui is trying to force her to sleep. Rangiku sighed, Shunsui wasn't kidding when he mentioned that he really needed her help. With her mind made up she rose to her feet, she would try and get Nanao to eat something then she would try and find out more about Nanao's sleep related anxiety. "You just stay here and rest okay, I wont be too long."

She saw Nanao give her a tiny nod, satisfied she padded quietly across the room and slipped out into hallway.

* * *

><p>Back at the Tenth Division, Toushiro had finished his morning training sessions and now he was back in his office busily working through the days paperwork. When he'd returned home to have a quick shower and freshen up, he'd been surprised to find that Rangiku hadn't yet returned from her SWA meeting. They'd agreed to have lunch together and he'd waited quite awhile for her, but Kotaro had been growing irritated and so in the end he'd made some lunch for the two of them. After another hour Rangiku still hadn't returned so instead he'd headed to the office and decided to let Kotaro have his nap there instead. Who knew how long the SWA meeting would last, especially when you had a bunch of women chatting about whatever.<p>

He rubbed at his eyes warily as he went over the figures for the next quarters budget report. It was a very long and tedious task where every single calculation mattered, right down to the last yen. Admittedly he still had a whole two weeks left to complete it and send it back to the First Division, but while Kotaro was napping on the couch and Rangiku was still out he figured now would be the perfect opportunity to look it over and make a few rough calculations.

He heard a few footsteps outside the office door which was followed by a particularly loud knock which had him scowling as it broke his concentration midway through a calculation. He quickly glanced at Kotaro and felt even more annoyed that the noise had disturbed his sons sleep who was now beginning to stir.

There was another loud knock and Toushiro growled before yelling, "Yes! What is it?"

The door opened cautiously and Momo stepped into the room "Hi Shiro-chan!" Momo greeted happily.

"Momo how many times do I have to tell you," he begun exasperated.

"Its Captain Hitsugaya to you!" Kotaro piped up from the couch.

Toushiro glanced over to his son who was now sat up and grinning back at him, clearly pleased with his comment. Kotaro's little comment had earned him an "Aww" from Momo.

Toushiro sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, "Why are you here Momo?"

"Auntie Momo hug!" Kotaro called out before he launched himself off the couch and sped across the room, Momo knelt down and Kotaro bowled into her arms.

"Aww Kotaro you're so sweet," Momo squealed as she planted a kiss on Kotaro's cheek, "Its so hard to believe at times that you're related to Toushiro, he were such a brat when he were younger."

"HEY!" Toushiro called out in irritation, his eyebrow was twitching and he'd clenched his hand into a fist. He would not be ignored in his own office damn it. His raised voice cut straight through Kotaro's squeals and Momo's gushing and silence finally descended in the office.

"I'm sorry Daddy," Kotaro detached himself from Momo and padded over to Toushiro, "Don't get angry and shout."

"I'm not angry little man," Toushiro scooped Kotaro up and perched him on the edge of his desk.

"But you did shout," Kotaro pointed out as he kicked his little legs back and forth as they dangled off Toushiro's desk.

"Okay I shouted," Toushiro admitted, "But I'm not angry."

"But you only ever shout when you're angry," Kotaro added with a little frown, he even crossed his arms over his chest in a perfect imitation of Toushiro.

"Kotaro, I may be a little irritated but I'm by no means angry," Toushiro sighed warily, "Now be quiet for a minute."

Kotaro pouted at him but remained quiet, Toushiro then turned back to Momo, "Momo is there a reason why you're here?" He asked in a much calmer tone.

"I came to see you, Rangiku-san and Kotaro silly," Momo stepped forward and threw her arms around him in a tight hug, "The last time I saw you was before you went away on your mission."

"Oh that's right," Toushiro remembered guiltily how Momo had dropped off the mission notes and even then she'd only stayed a few minutes. Toushiro sat himself back down on his chair and Momo stepped over to the desk. Kotaro who'd kept quiet the whole time shuffled along the edge of the desk so he could cuddle Momo.

"I'm just here for a quick visit Toushiro, I actually stopped by to ask Rangiku-san something."

"You're out of luck I'm afraid Momo. Rangiku still hasn't returned from the SWA meeting," Toushiro glanced at the clock ticking away on the wall behind him. It was pushing on for three hours now, surely a meeting shouldn't last that long. Unless Rangiku had decided to stop out for lunch, but saying that, she would've sent him a message first and she wouldn't stay away from Kotaro for too long without a damn good reason, "Hang on a minute," Something went click in his mind, "Aren't you a member of the SWA too Momo?"

"Yes I am," Momo confirmed, "And that's why I'm here to see Rangiku, to see if she knew why the meeting had been cancelled and when the next one will be taking place."

"Wait the meeting was cancelled?" Toushiro asked rising to his feet, his mind was currently running through the different scenarios and possibilities, "Who cancelled the meeting Momo?"

"Well the only person who could've cancelled it, is Nanao-san," Momo paused as she considered something, "The message definitely originated from the Eighth."

Toushiro scowled deeply, they didn't call him a genius for nothing. He knew exactly where Rangiku was now, it was blatantly obvious. The meeting had been cancelled while Rangiku was en-route, she must've known that Nanao was the only one who could cancelled the meeting. So naturally she'd taken advantage of the situation knowing that he was looking after Kotaro and had gone over to the Eighth to see Shunsui and Nanao. Damn it, and after he'd told her specifically to not get involved.

"Um Toushiro is it something that I've said?" Momo asked timidly.

"Daddy's face has gone really red, he's going to explode!" Kotaro informed confused about whether he should be amused or scared.

"Toushiro?" Momo reached out and nudged his arm, which brought him out of his inner fuming, "I need to head back to the Fifth now, I've got quite a bit of work to catch up on. It was nice seeing you again."

"Okay Momo," He answered quietly, "I'll pass your message onto Rangiku when she returns."

Kotaro looked mournfully up at Momo, sad to see her leaving so soon, "Will Auntie Momo come and visit again soon?"

"Aww you're so cute Kotaro, of course I'll come and visit soon," She replied pulling him into a squishy hug. After bidding the two of them farewell Momo headed back to the Fifth leaving Toushiro fuming about what the hell Rangiku could be up to.

"Daddy," Kotaro called tugging on his sleeve.

Toushiro turned his attention to Kotaro, "What is it little man?" He asked softly trying hard not to appear angry.

"I'm still tired, can I have a cuddle?"

"Sure," Toushiro slipped off his Captains haori and placed it on the back of his chair, he then stepped over to a cupboard in the corner of the room and pulled out a blue blanket that he kept to one side for Kotaro. He then walked back over to the couch and stretched out on it, Kotaro came piling on top of him and snuggled up on his chest. He carefully spread the blanket on top of them and he lay back into the cushions. He did feel kinda tired himself and although the budget report was far from complete, everything else had been attended to, so he figured if he fell asleep at least the division wouldn't fall into chaos.

* * *

><p>While balancing several plates and dishes in one hand and two cups in the other, Rangiku used her foot to slide the kitchen door open. Stepping inside Shunsui's kitchen she dumped all the pots in the sink and turned on the hot tap.<p>

Her plan to get Nanao to eat something had been quite successful and now she was proceeding with plan B. Trying to get Nanao to relax. She'd figured if she could get Nanao to relax enough, then just maybe she would stand a chance of getting her to talk and open up about what was making her feel so anxious and agitated.

So while she was washing up the dinner pots, Nanao was taking a nice relaxing hot bath just as Rangiku had suggested.

Shunsui still hadn't returned yet but Rangiku could still feel his strong presense and by the feel of it, he was slowly making his way back to the Seireitei. Rangiku had a hunch that he'd found something out and was simply using the walk back to mull it over.

So it was understandable that she felt a moments confusion when she heard Shunsui's front door open and then closeagain, she stopped what she were doing to listen in. She had no idea who it could be, the person had completely suppressed their reiatsu. It was quite fortunate that she too had done the same, but she hadn't done it too sneak around someone else's house, she'd done it because she knew Toushiro would be angry if he knew she were here.

She backed right up against the kitchen wall so if the person did look into the kitchen, she would be hidden behind the door when it opened. She heard soft footfalls in the living room and then the person began to head down the hallway towards the kitchen.

The footsteps paused right outside the kitchen however the person chose not to open the door seeing as there were no sounds to be heard or reiatsu signatures to be felt within. Rangiku knew it wasn't like her to be passive like this, but whoever was sneaking around here clearly wouldn't be expecting to find her here. She also had to be cautious, she couldn't imagine many people would have the gall to willingly stroll into a Captains house to have a nose around, they would have to be incredibly brave or incredibly stupid.

Rangiku's instincts were screaming out at her that this person knew exactly what they doing here and also knew that Shunsui was presently elsewhere.

Once the person had moved off down the hallway, Rangiku padded silently over to the kitchen door, while praying that Shunsui kept his doors well oiled as she reached for the handle to slide it open a crack.

She cautiously peered out into the hallway and saw a tall figure wearing a white haori type robe with long black hair trailing down their back, gliding soundlessly away from her towards Shunsui's bedroom. The only sounds in the house were the occasional splashes coming from the bathroom, from where Nanao was having her bath unaware of the approaching trespasser. The person obviously hearing the sounds was heading in that direction.

Rangiku saw the white robe and immediately thought that the person was a Captain, however the long hair trailing down the back covered any potential kanji markings that identified who they were. Long black hair. Out of all the Captains there were presently only four who had black hair. Both Soifon and Unohana could be ruled out, they were both much shorter then this man. Rangiku knew it was a man because of the wide shoulders and lack of curves. Which left either Kuchiki or Kenpachi, but she immediately ruled both of them out. Kenpachi was much taller and bulkier then this man, not to mention he generally had his hair spiked and Kuchiki's hair was considerably shorter.

So who could it be? Who else wore white haori's other then the Captains. The realisation struck Rangiku like a bolt of lightening and she had to suppress a gasp of surprise. Didn't the members of Central 46 wear similar haori's? But surely they had no right to send someone snooping around a Captains house, did they? And if they were here for Shunsui, surely they would have knocked first rather then just inviting themselves in. It was also blatantly obvious to everyone that Shunsui wasn't home, his massive presense could be felt all the way across the Seireitei. Rangiku noticed that he'd seemed to have sped up and was hurrying back over here. Did he know he had an intruder?

The only conclusion she could reach was that Central 46 were in fact here for Nanao, why else would they sneak around while Shunsui was away. It would be their only opportunity to get to Nanao while he was out the way.

Rangiku gritted her teeth together as she saw the man slip into Shunsui and Nanao's bedroom. No wonder Shunsui disliked leaving her alone lately, he must have suspected something like this would happen. But still something felt wrong about it all. Surely Central 46 would only get involved after the situation had been refereed to them by the Head-Captain.

Having no time to lose, Rangiku grabbed the nearest tray which felt pretty heavy in her hands and slipped out the kitchen. She began to pad as quickly as she could down the hallway but without making a sound. She'd only made it five steps down the hallway when she was grabbed from behind, a massive hand came up and covered her mouth.

Instincts kicking in, Rangiku slammed her heel down on the persons toe and rammed her elbow back into their side. She heard a sharp intake of breath and the person loosened their grip on her. She spun around ready to throw a punch in her attackers face, but she stopped when she realised it was Shunsui.

"Easy Ran-chan," He whispered quietly as he massaged his ribs, Rangiku had managed to elbow him in his left side ribs which were still a little sore.

"Shunsui," she hissed back ready to throttle him for sneaking up on her like that, however she shoved the urge to the back of her mind, she had more pressing matters at hand, "I think they sent someone from Central 46 to snoop around," she whispered as she glanced back down the hallway where they could see the man's shadowy figure floating across the paper walls, "Do you think they're here for Nanao?"

"It would appear so," Shunsui's eyes narrowed dangerously, "Come on," he replied a dark look forming on his face.

Rangiku started down the hallway again with Shunsui close on her heels, however a loud piercing scream originating from the bathroom which was then abruptly cut off, had them both sprinting down the hallway and abandoning all sense of stealth.

Rangiku made it first to the bedroom and she charged through the door and over to where the man was hovering outside the bathroom door. The tray she was wielding in her hands was heavy and ceramic and the sound it made as she cracked it over the intruders head was heavenly, unfortunately though, it wasn't enough to down the man. Luckily though Shunsui had launched himself at the man, tackling him to the ground and now the two were wrestling around on the floor, each trying to get the upper hand.

Shunsui managed to roll the guy onto his back and he then gripped the front of the man's robe and hoisted him up off the floor and slammed him heavily against the wall. The guys black hair had fallen into his face acting as a curtain, obscuring their view.

"Who are! And WHAT do you want!" Shunsui asked angrily.

"SHUNSUI! RANGIKU! What the hell are you doing?" Nanao's angry voice came from the bathroom.

They both turned their heads to see Nanao standing in the doorway her hand glowing with kido ready to blast either one of them to bits, wearing only a hastily wrapped towel that barely concealed her body and a look of pure anger adorning her face. Her anger was directed solely at them rather then the intruder.

"Let him go!" She demanded angrily.

Shunsui and Rangiku shared one confused look before Shunsui roughly pulled the man away from the wall and shoved him in a way so that both Rangiku and Nanao were now safely behind him and the intruder was in front.

Rangiku stepped forward so she was by Shunsui's side, just as the intruder had dragged himself back to his feet and had flung his hair out of his eyes in irritation. Both Rangiku's and Shunsui's eyes went wide in astonishment as they stared back at the man standing before them.

"What the hell!" They both exclaimed in unison.

They had no time to ponder the current situation. They both felt Nanao's pressure flicker behind them, as they both spun around to check on her, it suddenly spiked and faltered. The ball of kido Nanao held in her hand destabilized and they both threw their hands up to shield their eyes just as the spell collapsed and exploded out.

The force of the blast slammed into them causing them to stagger back a few steps. Once the smoke had cleared they glanced at the door to see that Nano had been blasted clean off her feet and was now lying in an unconscious heap on the bathroom floor.

"Nanao!"

"NANAO-CHAN!"

* * *

><p>So would you like me to work on the Christmas special or are you dying for the next chapter? Lol I'm so evil but I'll take into consideration your wishes. It is coming up to christmas after all. *Happy Hugs*<p> 


	22. Chapter 22

Hello my readers! After the huge response from the last chapter I decided to work on this chapter and get it out ^_^b. Thank you all so much for your kind reviews and comments. This will probably be the last chapter I'll release of this story before Christmas, as I've decided to write the Christmas fic too. I've already made a start on it and I think you'll all enjoy it once its complete. As always all thoughts and comments are appriciated. Happy Reading!

* * *

><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 22<p>

"Nanao-chan!" Shunsui rushed over to Nanao's prone form, dropping down to his knees he gently scooped her up to cradle her in his arms, "Can you hear me?"

Nanao stirred in his arms almost immediately and as she peeked her eyes open she uttered a small "Ow," as she tried to lift her arm.

"Don't move Nanao-chan," Shunsui advised as he stroked Nanao's hair out of her face, "Your kido just backfired on you, take it easy okay."

"Shun-kun is she okay?" Rangiku asked as she appeared by his side.

"Is she hurt Shunsui?" Asked an all too familiar voice.

Shunsui's eyes narrowed as he turned to face Ukitake. It felt like he was looking at a stranger, not his best friend that he'd known for centuries. If he wasn't still angry with him he'd be bombarding him with all the obvious questions. But as it just so happened, he was still pretty furious with him, and right now Nanao needed him more, "Her kido spell just backfired on her, of course she's hurt Juushiro."

He saw Rangiku wince at his harsh tone and sighed inwardly, instead of dwelling on it he decided to just focus on Nanao for now, "I'm just going to help you sit up Nanao-chan." As he eased her up into a more comfortable position he noticed that she'd closed her eyes again, "Are you okay?"

"Just a little dizzy, the rooms spinning," Nanao replied through pursed lips. She'd already been looking pale but the little colour she'd had left in her face seemed to suddenly drain away. Nanao pressed a hand against Shunsui's chest and pushed him weakly away, she then tried to scramble over to the toilet.

Realising what was going to happen next Shunsui scooped Nanao up around her waist and lifted her the rest of the way, he'd only just made it when Nanao began to retch, "Yare Yare Nanao-chan," he sighed as he pulled Nanao's hair back and out of the line of fire.

"Shunsui, why don't you let me take care of Nanao," Rangiku offered as she stepped forward. She met his eye then glanced briefly to Ukitake who gave a tiny discreet nod, "I think you really should talk to Captain Ukitake, he needs to know."

Shunsui clenched his jaw tightly and glanced over to Ukitake. His friend was looking slightly dishevelled from their recent scuffle and he noticed a thin trickle of blood snaking its way down the side of his face, "Fine, I'll be in the living room Ran-chan. Shout me if you need me," he then reluctantly dragged himself to his feet and brushed past Ukitake without so much as sparing him a glance and stepped out of the bathroom.

"Captain Ukitake," Rangiku called before he too could disappear, "I'm so sorry! I'm really really sorry!" She felt utterly mortified by her actions.

"It's fine Rangiku, you don't need to apologise to me."

"But I bashed you over the head with a tray," how the hell was the man not concussed Rangiku wondered.

"I know dear I felt it," Ukitake smiled back at her kindly.

"It was the hair, it completely threw me out." Rangiku glanced at Ukitake's hair that'd now faded to a mid grey colour, all in the space of a few minutes.

Ukitake ran his fingers through the long grey strands, "Yes I can see why, it is rather strange after all."

"But how?" Rangiku was at a complete loss for words.

"I don't know Rangiku, even Retsu is at a complete loss," Ukitake grinned back.

"Is it something to do with your illness?" Rangiku asked.

Ukitake slid his eyes shut, "It would appear so."

"ARE YOU COMING OR WHAT JUU!" Shunsui shouted angrily from down the hallway.

"Be right there Shunsui," Ukitake yelled back, he glanced back at Rangiku and smiled before his look turned to concern when his gaze shifted to Nanao.

"At least he called you Juu this time," Rangiku pointed out helpfully.

Ukitake sighed lightly, "I suppose that is some progress," He then spun on his heel and disappeared after Shunsui.

Rangiku crouched down beside Nanao and rested her hands on her shoulders, "Would you like a glass of water Nanao?"

"Please," Nanao answered shakily.

"Okay I'll just tie your hair back first," Rangiku had spotted one of Shunsui's hair ties lying discarded by the sink. She picked it up and began pulling Nanao's hair back into a simple pony tail, "Does your hand hurt Nanao?" Rangiku asked gently.

Nanao lifted her hand and gave it an experimental flick, "Not now, just feels like I've got pins and needles in it."

Rangiku knew just how extensively a kido spell back firing could hurt a person, she'd experienced it a few times back in the Academy. It never was a pleasant experience. She held a glass of water up to Nanao's lips, who took a few small steady sips.

"Rangiku," Nanao began once she'd had enough water, "Do you ever feel like," Nanao paused as she searched for the right words, "Like."

Rangiku waited patiently, but Nanao seemed unable to voice how she were feeling. She was just about to suggest helping her off the floor when Nanao spoke up again.

"Like everything is about to drastically change and you don't know if its going to be a good change or a bad change. But either way you have no control over the situation what so ever."

"Nanao," Rangiku spoke softly, "Change is a good thing, it keeps you moving forward in life."

"I just have this awful feeling in the back of my mind, that everything is going to change and when it does something terrible is going to happen."

"You're just stressed out and tired Nanao, it plays havoc with your mind," Rangiku shook her head slightly, "Come on, lets get you off the floor," she readjusted Nanao's towel which had been hanging loosely off her and threatening to fall off her emaciated frame at any second. Rangiku draped Nanao's good arm around her neck and she slid an arm around her waist, "Ready?" Nanao nodded and Rangiku lifted her with ease to her feet, she felt shocked by how light Nanao felt.

Rangiku steered Nanao back into the bedroom and eased her back down to the bed, she then went bustling around the room and rummaging through drawers to find a nightie for Nanao. She glanced over her shoulder and noticed Nanao shivering and so she added a dressing gown to the mental list of things she needed to find. Several minutes later she placed the few items on the bed next to Nanao, "Here we go Nanao, you get changed while I'll make some more tea."

After one last glance at Nanao, Rangiku left the room and walked quietly down the hallway, as she neared the kitchen she heard Shunsui's and Ukitake's voices floating down the hallway from the living room. From what she could hear, it sounded like they were having a hushed argument. She briefly thought about offering the two of them a drink but decided against it and went to step into the kitchen.

"Ran-chan," Shunsui called down the hallway. She doubled back and walked the few steps into the living area where Shunsui and Ukitake were sitting on opposite couches, "How's Nanao-chan?" He asked once she came into view, he patted the couch beside him inviting her to sit down.

She settled herself down and glanced between the two Captains. Ukitake seemed his usual calm self, she couldn't help but notice that his hair had returned back to its customary white colour, much to her relief. Shunsui she noticed didn't seem as aggravated as he did earlier, but she could tell from his posture that he were far from happy, "I just left her to get changed while I made some tea," she knew this wasn't the answer he wanted to hear, "She's weak Shunsui, very very weak."

"I know," Shunsui slid his eyes shut and gave a tiny nod, "I can barely feel her pressure lately, the only time I do feel it is when it fluctuates as you just saw."

"Shunsui," Ukitake sat forward, "You must take Nanao to see Retsu and have her checked over."

Shunsui shook his head, "Juu I took her to the Fourth, you were there when Isane told me that Nanao had all the classic signs of stress and exhaustion."

"Yes but that was over a week ago and she hasn't gotten any better," Ukitake stated calmly, "Its as clear as day that there's something wrong with her. Its a lot more then just simple stress."

"Shun-kun, have you told Captain Ukitake everything that you told me?" Rangiku asked glancing between the two men again.

"Yes I have," Shunsui replied without meeting her gaze.

"No you haven't Shunsui," Ukitake injected patiently, "You still haven't told me how you got yourself beaten up so badly," Ukitake then switched his gaze to Rangiku, "Has he told you the full story Rangiku?"

"Err, well no I guess," she replied awkwardly. She knew that Nanao had been responsible for his injuries but Shunsui hadn't told her the full details and to be frank she hadn't wanted to ask either, "Just the brief version."

"Shunsui, please you have to tell me," Ukitake fixed Shunsui with a penetrating stare, "Just like you and Rangiku I'm also concerned about Nanao. Why are you so reluctant to let me help you?"

"Because of the circumstances surrounding that morning Juu," Shunsui turned his face away from them and closed his eyes.

"Are you ashamed of what happened to you?" Ukitake asked seriously, "Or are you just simply trying to protect Nanao from the repercussions?" Shunsui's eyes shot open and he whipped his head back to face Ukitake, before he could make some angry retort Ukitake held his hand up, "Don't be angry Shunsui, but it isn't hard to put two and two together. At first I thought it was a possibility that maybe you'd been teasing Nanao and had gone a little too far and she'd retaliated, which to be honest isn't that uncommon, but I find it hard to believe that Nanao would willingly inflict such damage on you. Its the same reason why you cant lift a finger towards Nanao, because of your love for each other right?"

Shunsui remained quiet and Ukitake took the opportunity to continue, "So the only other explanation left, is that Nanao was forced to attack you against her will and because it was Nanao, you simply couldn't fight back. Am I correct Shunsui?"

"Then there's Nanao's general illness," Ukitake continued when Shunsui seemed reluctant to talk, "Her destabilizing reiatsu as we all just saw. Then add that to what you told me that day when you both visited, while I was looking after little Kotaro."

"FINE!" Shunsui shot to his feet, apparently Ukitake's words had finally broken through to him, "IF you want to know so bad then I'll tell you, because honestly I'm getting a little sick of hearing about what you 'THINK' is going on and the accusations that generally follow along," Shunsui then slumped back down heavily into the couch.

Rangiku rose to her feet, "Look I'll leave you two alone, I really should make that tea and check on Nanao."

Shunsui's hand latched onto her wrist before she could even take one step, "Stay, I think you need to hear this too," he waited for her to sit down, then he launched into the full recollection of what'd happened between the time they'd left Ukitake's house and everything that'd transpired since then. By the time he'd finished both Rangiku and Ukitake had equal looks of horror on their faces, it had been a dizzying amount of information in a few short minutes. He leant back into the couch and closed his eyes feeling equally drained for fully revealing what he'd kept hidden for a good two weeks.

"Shunsui why didn't you tell me sooner," Ukitake asked as he buried his face in his hands, "I've been so harsh on you too, no wonder you over reacted so much when I tried to explain how bad it looked when I walked in the office that night."

"I wasn't over reacting," Shunsui replied without opening his eyes, "You practically called me a rapist, I think my reaction was perfectly acceptable considering the circumstances."

"How many times do I have to say it!" Ukitake growled before he shot to his feet, "For the last time Shunsui, I wasn't implying anything of the sort!"

"You know what," Shunsui peeked his eyes open and levelled them on Ukitake, "I never really noticed before how much of an hypocrite you are Juu," Shunsui closed his eyes again and folded his arms behind his head, "I mean if I made any comment like that you'd be quick to punch my lights out."

"No I wouldn't," Ukitake shot back warily, "I wouldn't dream of hitting my best friend."

Shunsui jumped to his feet, "No, you'd much rather just accuse them of being a rap-"

"ENOUGH! You two are giving me a freaking headache.." Rangiku cut in angrily bringing an abrupt end to their disagreement, "Can you even hear yourselves? You're worst then kids, how does this even help us to help Nanao?"

Shunsui and Ukitake shared a guilty look before they both muttered an apology, which happened to tick Rangiku off even more, "Why are you even apologising to me, you should be apologising to each other. You're best friends, so why don't you both start acting like it."

"I guess we both have been acting a little immature," Ukitake admitted rather sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head.

"Speak for yourself Juu," Shunsui stubbornly crossed his arms over his chest.

"Will you cut it with the comments Shunsui," Ukitake sighed in exasperation, "I'm trying to apologise to you. That's why I came here in the first place."

"So you came to apologise," Shunsui repeated doubtfully, "Even though it were pretty obvious that I wasn't here?"

"Look Shunsui," Ukitake said starting to grow irritated again, "I've been very worried about you and Nanao. I understand why you didn't want to tell me everything before and I realise now how much I've unknowingly hurt your feelings with my comments. I'm truly sorry for that, so can we please just put all of this behind us now. All I want is to help you get to the bottom of this situation with Nanao. She's clearly very ill and you don't seem to be coping with it so well either."

Ukitake sat back down on the couch apparently finished with his apology. Shunsui sank back down onto the couch unable to meet his eye for the time being. Neither of them seemed like they wanted to talk so Rangiku brought up the one subject she'd been dying to find out about.

"Shunsui," Rangiku figured she'd ask now while she had the chance, "Did you find anything out in the Rukongai?"

"You went back to find those guys alone?" Ukitake's gaze darted between Rangiku and Shunsui, "What if they'd done the same thing to you that they did to Nanao?"

"Oh relax will you Juu," Shunsui snapped out of his quiet stupor, "Yes I went back to find those guys, but it were a complete waste of time."

"They wouldn't tell you anything," Rangiku sighed, "Why am I not surprised."

"Actually they were very co-operative," Shunsui corrected.

"So what did you find out then Shunsui?" Ukitake leant forward and rested his elbows on his knees.

"We all know that not everyone who possesses spiritual pressure chooses to go to the Shinigami Academy," Shunsui saw their nods of agreement and he continued, "Well one of the guys is one such person."

"Did he tell you exactly what he did to Nanao?" Rangiku asked trying not to show her impatience.

"No, I had him show me what he did to Nanao."

There was a sharp intake of breath from Ukitake, "Are you insane Shunsui!"

"Calm down, there was nothing to worry about," He turned to look at Rangiku, "I'll even show you myself right now. All you need to do is produce a ball of kido."

"Actually Shunsui," Ukitake interrupted, he flicked his wrist and a pearly white orb formed in his hand which gave his now pale grey hair a silvery sheen, "I'll be the guinea pig."

Shunsui raised his palm towards Ukitake and gave a sharp flick of his wrist. Rangiku felt a brief brush of his spiritual pressure and when the small force reached Ukitake, the kido ball hovering in his palm flickered and died. However within seconds the kido ball sprung back to life, strong and stable.

"Oh I understand now," Ukitake nodded his head and looked up at Shunsui, "It was just a basic technique where a person uses a small blast of pressure to momentarily disrupt and dampen another persons kido spell."

"That's right Juu," Shunsui sighed heavily, "Just a perfectly harmless defence technique to dampen any basic kido spell."

"Wait so what are you trying to say," Rangiku injected loudly, "Are you telling me that man had nothing to do with Nanao's current state?"

"I didn't want to believe it at first either Ran-chan, that's why I had the man do the same technique on me," Shunsui shrugged, "But whatever is affecting Nanao, wasn't caused by anything that man did to her."

Rangiku frowned and began to massage her temples, she could feel a stinker of a headache forming, "So what do we do now? Where do we go from here? In case you haven't noticed, Nanao's health is deteriorating quite rapidly."

"I'm well aware Ran-chan," Shunsui's low voice rumbled.

"Shunsui, I don't think we have much choice now," Ukitake pinched the bridge of his nose, like Rangiku he could feel a headache brewing up too, "We need Retsu's input on this, Nanao's life could very well depend on it."

Shunsui remained silent for quite awhile, the minutes just seemed to stretch on and on. Rangiku and Ukitake could see perfectly well the internal battle going on in his head. He slid his eyes closed and quietly uttered, "Okay Juu, I'll have Retsu check Nanao over."

"The sooner the better too," Rangiku encouraged.

"First thing tomorrow morning then," Shunsui agreed.

"Shunsui," Ukitake spoke up, "We have a Captains meeting first thing tomorrow and if I recall, its a joint meeting with the Lieutenants too."

Shunsui's eyes went wide, "Nanao cant possibly go, you've seen her. She's too ill for something like that!"

"I know and its a mandatory meeting too," Ukitake rested his chin in his hand, "This is going to be potentially problematic."

As they all fell into a gloomy silence, the soft padding of feet walking down the hallway reached their ears. They all glanced up as Nanao appeared in the doorway leaning heavily against the frame. The dressing gown Rangiku had picked out for her seemed to bury her, but at least Nanao wasn't shaking like a leaf now.

"Nanao-chan," Shunsui rose to his feet and stepped over to her, "How are you feeling?"

In Rangiku's opinion it was a silly question to ask, Nanao looked horrendous. There was just no other way to describe it.

"Come and sit down with us," Shunsui guided her to the couch and Nanao settled herself down between him and Rangiku, "I was just catching up with Juu and Ran-chan."

Rangiku smiled at Nanao and reached for her hand. As she looked away her eyes fell on Shunsui's clock that sat on a side table, She gasped loudly and jumped to her feet, "Oh my god is that the time! Toshi's going to kill me!"

* * *

><p>Back at the Tenth Division, Toushiro was sat in his living room with his legs crossed under the low table, working through the budget report he'd brought home with him. Kotaro was sat in his lap quietly flicking through a book that Ukitake had given him several months ago.<p>

He picked up his brush and added another calculation to the form in front of him. At this rate the report would be finished in record time. Kotaro stirred in his lap and placed the book he'd been looking at on the edge of the table, he then puffed his cheeks out and let the air out as a sigh. Toushiro quirked an eyebrow in amusement, "Are you okay little man?"

"Yeah," Kotaro leant back into his chest, "Daddy.."

"What is it?" Toushiro prompted.

"When is Mummy coming home? She's been gone a very long time."

Toushiro glanced at the clock on the wall and frowned, "I know little man, I expect she will be home soon though."

"I hope so Daddy," Kotaro patted his stomach, "I'm feeling hungry."

"Already?" Toushiro felt incredulous, "You only had lunch a few hours ago and you ate a lot more then usual too," Toushiro's eyebrows knitted together, it was much too early for Kotaro to be having his snack already, "Cant you wait a little bit longer?"

"But my tummy feels all rumbly," Kotaro replied sweetly, "And its growling too!"

"Are you sure?" Toushiro smirked, "Let me see if I can hear it," Toushiro spun Kotaro around so he could place his ear against Kotaro's stomach, "Then just maybe, I might let you have a snack early."

"But its not growling now," Kotaro cried out in dismay, "It feels rumbly though."

Toushiro was that absorbed in teasing Kotaro that he never heard the front door open and close. It was only when he heard a floorboard creaking in the hallway, did he stop and look up just in time to see Rangiku pass by the living room door, "So you've managed to find your way home then?" He called with his voice raised slightly.

"Mummy You're home!" Kotaro called excitedly as he sprung after her.

Rangiku reappeared in the doorway and as Kotaro reached her, she knelt down and opened her arms, "Hiya sweetie," she scooped him up and kissed him on the forehead.

"Mummy where have you been?" Kotaro latched his arms around her neck and snuggled his face into her hair, "I'm hungry but Daddy wanted to hear my tummy growl first. Can I pleeeease have my snack?" Kotaro pleaded.

"Yes you can, ask Daddy very nicely if he'll make one for you," she lifted her hand to pinch the bridge of her nose, "I need to have a lie down."

"Is Mummy feeling okay?" Kotaro pulled out of their hug and peered at her face.

"Its just a headache sweetie," Rangiku stood up and finally glanced over to him.

Toushiro had been sitting back and watching the exchange with his arms folded across his chest. He'd been slightly annoyed by Rangiku's actions today, but one look at her face and he could tell that she was upset and stressed, "Kotaro."

Kotaro glanced back over his shoulder, "Yes Daddy?"

"Come and sit back down, Mummy needs to have some quiet time," Toushiro rose to his feet, "I'll make you something tasty to eat," he then switched his gaze back to Rangiku. With one glance exchanged between them, Rangiku knew, that he knew where she'd been all day. In exchange he also knew that whatever had happened while she'd been at the Eighth, had upset her considerably, "How about you, are you hungry too Rangiku?"

"Maybe a little," Rangiku then turned on her heel and headed down the hallway to their bedroom.

Toushiro busied himself for the next ten minutes by bustling around the kitchen and whipping up some noodles. He took a steaming bowl into the living room and placed them in front of Kotaro, "Eat up little man, I'm just going to check on Mummy." Kotaro picked up his chopsticks and got stuck in with gusto.

He went back to the kitchen and placed a bowl of noodles on a tray for Rangiku. He then placed an aspirin and a glass of water on the tray too, then he picked up the goods and headed to his bedroom.

When he stepped into their bedroom, Rangiku was lying on her side with her back to the door. "I know your meeting had been cancelled and I also know you've probably been at the Eighth this whole time." Toushiro walked over to the bed and placed the tray down on the bedside table, he then sat on the edge of the bed and draped an arm around Rangiku's waist. He heard a little sniff and he sighed softly, "I told you not to get involved."

Rangiku rolled onto her back and Toushiro saw the tears glistening in her eyes, he cocked his head to one side and frowned, "What happened Rangiku, why are you so upset?" His hand automatically went to rest against her cheek.

Rangiku wiped at her eyes with her sleeve, "Its just really hard to see her looking so weak and frail," several more tears leaked out of her eyes and she sniffed again.

"Who Ise? Is she sick?" Toushiro asked although he was sure he knew who she meant already.

"Very sick," Rangiku then pulled herself up so she could rest her chin on his shoulder, "I've never seen her like this before."

He pulled her closer and began stroking her hair, "I didn't want you to get involved Rangiku, because from the rumours I'd been hearing I thought that Kyouraku and Ise were having relationship issues. I never imagined that Ise would be ill."

"I'm sorry Toshi," Rangiku mumbled against his shoulder, "I should have told you before I headed over there. It was a spur of the moment thing and I had no idea that I would be gone for so long."

"I were a little bit annoyed, but don't worry about it now. Its happened. At least I didn't get called for an emergency Captains meeting," Toushiro kissed the top of her head, "I think Kotaro's enjoyed himself today."

"He usually does when he spends time with you at work," Rangiku pointed out while wiping at her eyes again.

"This is not like you at all Rangiku," Toushiro frowned as he took in her tear stained face, he sighed softly before adding, "Why don't you tell me everything that you've found out."

"Okay, but I think it would be for the best if I told you once Kotaro goes to bed," Rangiku's eyes closed and a few more tears leaked out.

"That's fine if you think its for the best," Toushiro replied softly.

"Just keep an open mind though. Some of the stuff may seem a little.. Strange."

Before Toushiro could answer, Rangiku spoke up again, "Toshi."

"Yeah?"

"Did you know we've got a joint Captains and Lieutenants meeting tomorrow?" Rangiku asked peeking up at his face, "What are we going to do about Kotaro?"

"Don't worry Rangiku, I've already got it covered," Toushiro smirked back at her, "Did you know Third Seat Hosokawa is rather fond of Kotaro? He's offered to watch over Kotaro while he teaches a Kido class for beginners."

"That's great, just as long as Kotaro doesn't get bored watching," Rangiku surmised.

"I doubt that will happen," Toushiro grinned, "While I was training the recruits earlier, Kotaro showed a lot of interest in what I was teaching. So I've taught him a basic sword kata. I've instructed Hosokawa to see that Kotaro practises his kata while we are at the meeting."

"Hey!" Rangiku pushed him playfully on the shoulder, "Why do you get to teach him how to use a sword and not me?"

"You can teach him kido if you like," Toushiro smirked.

"No way. Besides Nanao and Momo have both expressed their desires to be his teacher when the time comes," Rangiku protested, before a sad expression found its way back onto her face.

"Well how about hand to hand combat then?" Toushiro bargained quickly, trying to divert her attention away from Nanao, "I know you've always enjoyed teaching our female division members self defence."

Rangiku pouted, "Throw in his Shunpo training too and you have yourself a deal."

"Deal," he agreed his eyes twinkling slightly.

There was a knock at the front door and Kotaro came charging down the hallway yelling, "Mummy! Daddy! Someone's at the front door!"

"See who it is little man," Toushiro yelled back.

Kotaro's feet stampeded back down the hallway and then he yelled at the door, "Who is it?" He then came charging back to the bedroom bouncing with excitement, "Its Gran-Gran!"

"Invite her in and I'll be there in a second Kotaro," Toushiro instructed. Once Kotaro had bounded out of sight he kissed Rangiku then handed her the glass and an aspirin, "Drink up. I have a feeling Unohana is here about Kotaro's test results," he pecked her on the lips then wiped at her eyes before getting to his feet and leaving the bedroom.


	23. Chapter 23

Hello to my readers and a Happy New Year! I apologise for the lateness of this chapter, I had planned on having it out much sooner. However due to a combination of constant distractions and interruptions, three fully written attempts at it that I just was'nt happy with and a temporary inspiration block. It came out slow... painfully slow, but I'm happy with it now :D And I can finally start on chapter 24 which I'm really excited about. Thank you to everybody who read and reviewed the last chapter. I'm happy you all enjoyed the Xmas fic and welcome to the people who read the Xmas fic, then went on to reading my other stories :D Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 23<p>

Through the bedroom door that had been left slightly ajar, Rangiku could hear the soft murmur of voices floating down the hallway. She couldn't make out what Toushiro and Unohana were discussing, but she could tell from both of their tones that they were having a serious discussion.

Rangiku rolled onto her back and draped her arm over her eyes to shield them from the light shining above. Her head was still throbbing slightly and she'd been reluctant to move very far, even though she really wanted to hear what Unohana had found out from Kotaro's tests. She hoped like hell that everything had come back okay, she couldn't bare the thought of her little boy being seriously ill.

She strained her ears to try and pick out whether Kotaro was in the living room with Toushiro and Unohana. He'd been very loud and exuberant on Unohana's arrival twenty minutes ago, but for the last ten minutes she'd hardly heard a peep out of him.

Right on cue she heard Kotaro's bedroom door slide open, then the soft patter of feet as he skipped quietly down the hallway. He then paused outside her bedroom and with a light tap on the door he called in a loud whisper "Mummy are you sleeping?" Not waiting for her to answer he slid the door open and quietly crept towards the bed.

Rangiku felt the mattress dip slightly as Kotaro clambered onto the bed, he then crawled across the bed and paused once he were next to her. When she lifted her arm away and peeked her eyes open, she saw Kotaro's teal eyes gazing down at her, "Hey there."

"Does Mummy still have a headache?" Kotaro asked tilting his head to one side.

"A little bit sweetie," she reached a hand up to ruffle his unruly locks, "I didn't know you were in your room, I thought you were with Daddy and Gran-Gran."

"Daddy asked me to go to my room while he spoke with Gran-Gran," Kotaro pouted back at her, "He said it was Captains stuff."

"You didn't have to go to your room, you could've come in here to keep me company," Rangiku pulled him closer so she could give him a cuddle.

"Mummy," Kotaro settled into her side and he snuggled his face into the crook of her neck.

"What is it sweetie?" Rangiku brought an hand up to cup the side of his head.

"Did I do something wrong?" Kotaro asked quietly.

"No of course not Kotaro," Rangiku sighed, "Why would you even think that?"

Kotaro hesitated slightly before he answered, "I heard Daddy talking to Gran-Gran about me."

"I expect Gran-Gran is discussing your test results with Daddy."

"What test results?" Kotaro sat back up and turned to face her.

"The ones you helped Gran-Gran with," Rangiku cupped her hand under his chin, "Remember that day when we all came home from the Fourth?"

"Oh," Kotaro looked away from her. When he realised that he'd been duped, the expression on his face was adorable, "Gran-Gran tricked me!"

"No sweetie," Rangiku smiled, "She just distracted you a little so the tests wouldn't seem so scary."

Kotaro fell silent and lay back down next to her, she busied herself by playing with a tuft of Kotaro's hair that always seemed to stick up, "I love you sweetie."

Kotaro glanced up at her and grinned before he scrambled to his knees and launched himself at her, "I love you too Mummy," he cried out as he hugged the life out of her. Rangiku sat herself up on the bed and pulled Kotaro closer for a proper hug, he always had a soothing affect on her, "Is Mummy starting to feel better now?"

"I guess I am," Rangiku smiled. It was true, her headache was finally dispersing and the agitation she'd felt since leaving the Eighth had subsided, she put it down to the aspirin finally taking effect. She kissed Kotaro's forehead and then rested her cheek against his head, "I've missed you today."

"Where have you been all day?" Kotaro asked quietly.

"I've been spending a bit of time with Auntie Nanao and Uncle Shunsui," Rangiku glanced down and couldn't help but feel guilty when she saw the look on Kotaro's face, he loved spending time with them too and he hadn't seen much of them lately either.

"Why couldn't I come too?" Kotaro asked pouting sadly.

"I'm sorry sweetie, but Auntie Nanao isn't feeling too good at the moment," Rangiku felt a pang of sadness when she recalled how thin and sickly Nanao had looked earlier.

"Is she feeling sad again?"

Rangiku pulled away from their hug and frowned, "Kotaro, what did you just say?" She wasn't quite sure she'd heard right.

"I said, is Auntie Nan-nan feeling sad again?" Kotaro answered innocently.

"Sweetie, why would you ask if Auntie Nanao is feeling sad again?"

"Because she were feeling sad when she were looking after me," Kotaro's eyebrows knitted together as a small frown formed on his face.

"When was that?"

"When you and Daddy were away," Kotaro looked away from her and began picking at the bed cover, he then returned his gaze to her and grinned, "I gave her a very big hug and it made her feel better again."

"That was nice of you," Rangiku smiled warmly at Kotaro.

"Mummy when can I see Auntie Nan-nan again?"

"Oh I don't know sweetie," Rangiku knew deep down that while Nanao was still sick, it would be unwise to allow Kotaro to get too close. She hated to admit it but Nanao currently had very little control over her spiritual pressure, as was evident by her kido spell backfiring. If what Shunsui had said was right, and Rangiku had no reason to doubt him, the slightest thing could set her off and who knows what would happen.

"What about tomorrow?" Kotaro asked hopefully.

"I'm sorry Kotaro," Rangiku felt awful inside. It was bad enough seeing Nanao in such a fragile state, but it felt even worst having to tell Kotaro that he couldn't see her, "Me and Daddy have a joint meeting in the morning, I have no idea how long its going to be."

Kotaro frowned and replied, "Maybe afterwards then?"

Rangiku sighed internally. Kotaro was a sweet child but when he had his mind set on something, it was always hard to dissuade him from it. Goodness knows where he got it from, "Kotaro, listen to me okay."

Kotaro stared at her with puppy eyes and stuck his bottom lip out.

"Auntie Nanao is feeling quite ill at the moment," Rangiku saw a flicker of concern in Kotaro's face, "And she needs a lot of peace and quiet so she can rest and get better again. So I think it would be for the best if we allowed her to rest. Do you understand?"

Kotaro looked at her mournfully and gave a little nod, "Can I see Uncle Shun-shun instead then?"

"He'll be too busy looking after Nanao," Rangiku hated seeing Kotaro looking so sad, "I know that you miss them sweetie and I promise as soon as Nanao's feeling better again, we'll go and see them both. How does that sound?" Rangiku got to her feet and stretched her arms out above her head.

"Okay," Kotaro mumbled without looking at her.

"Come here," Rangiku sighed and scooped Kotaro off the bed, "I know you miss them both, but you'll get to see them soon."

"I've not seen Grandad all week either," Kotaro pointed out sulkily.

"How about we go and see Grandad tomorrow instead?" Rangiku suggested, "We could drop by the Thirteenth and pay him a visit after the meeting. Would you like that?"

Kotaro brightened up instantly and nodded his head, "Can we really?"

"Yes we can sweetie," Rangiku adjusted Kotaro so she was balancing him on her hip with one arm supporting his tiny weight, "I've been wanting to catch up with him too," she walked over to the bedroom door and stepped out into the hallway.

"Am I allowed a cookie?" Kotaro's voice sounded muffled from where his face was pressed up against her shoulder.

"Did you eat all the noodles Daddy made for you?" Rangiku felt him nod his head against her shoulder, "Well I don't see why not then."

"Yay!" Kotaro's eyes lit up and he wiggled his legs wanting to be put down.

Rangiku lowered him to the floor and as soon as his feet touched the carpet, he was zooming away down the hallway heading for the kitchen.

* * *

><p>A few minutes later Rangiku stepped out of the kitchen carrying Kotaro who was now happily munching on a cookie. She walked quietly down the hallway and as she neared the living room she could hear Toushiro's voice getting clearer.<p>

"By how much?" Toushiro asked. Rangiku could hear light footfalls on the carpet and she made a guess that Toushiro was pacing about.

"We're looking at an increase of around fifty percent of his base energy in a space of two weeks," Rangiku heard Unohana answer with a rustle of paper.

Rangiku's mouth fell open slightly, she glanced down at Kotaro who was staring back at her curiously. She lifted a finger to her lips silently telling him to keep quiet. She felt awkward hovering outside her own living room, but she had the feeling that it wouldn't be wise to interrupt them just yet.

"But if his powers have increased by that much in such a short space of time, surely we would've been able to feel it. You cant exactly hide an increase in power like that," Toushiro replied sounding a little tense.

Rangiku frowned were they talking about Kotaro or not?

"Generally speaking," Unohana began, "If someone's power suddenly grew like Kotaro's appears to have done so. Then I'd estimate that the persons power at some point, would've had to have leaked out on at least two occasions."

Toushiro's voice rose in surprise, "Does Kotaro's increase in power, share any relation whatsoever to his sudden illness?"

"If you had asked me that question the same night you brought Kotaro to me, I would have said no," Unohana hesitated slightly.

"But.." Toushiro prompted.

"But now I'm not so sure," Unohana answered and Rangiku heard more papers rustling, "You see Kotaro's not the only one whose showing unusual readings on his test results."

"Ukitake?"

"I've performed the same tests on both Kotaro and Juushiro, including the spiritual pressure test. It seems that Juushiro's had an increase in spiritual pressure too. At first I thought it was just an anomaly but after comparing Juushiro's readings with those from Kotaro, I've determined that the sudden increase in Kotaro's spiritual pressure coincides with a huge change in Juushiro's own spiritual pressure and more notably his health."

"Is Ukitake's health deteriorating?"

"Quite the opposite Toushiro," Unohana paused, "Its improved considerably."

"I see," Toushiro sighed and Rangiku saw his shadow grow larger on the paper wall as he walked quite close by. Rangiku backed up slightly, feeling awful that she were unintentionally eavesdropping on them. "Is it possible that either Kotaro's growing power has caused the change in Ukitake's pressure and health, or maybe its the other way around and Ukitake's change in pressure has triggered the rise in Kotaro's power?"

"Mummy," Kotaro whispered in her ear. Rangiku jumped slightly momentarily forgetting that she were holding Kotaro in her arms, "Are you sure I didn't do something wrong?"

"Shh," Rangiku shushed him softly.

"Mummy, I thought it was wrong to listen in on people when they're talking?" Kotaro whispered softly.

"It is sweetie," Rangiku whispered back, "But its also rude to interrupt people whilst they're speaking."

"Oh," Kotaro replied, his eyebrows knitting together in confusion.

"They are two possible theories, however I think we can rule out the latter," Unohana replied after considering Toushiro's words.

"How so?" Toushiro obviously tired of pacing flopped heavily down onto the couch.

"Because its only been in this last week that I've noticed the changes in Juushiro's spiritual pressure and health. Whereas Kotaro's increase in power as been evident in the tests I performed whilst he was ill, almost a week prior to the changes in Juushiro. As for the first theory, it would require an incredible amount of power on Kotaro's part to be able to cause notable changes to a Captains spiritual pressure. The amount of power needed to be able to accomplish something like that would be very difficult to control, let alone hide."

"But you do believe that Kotaro's rise in power and the changes in Ukitake are related somehow?" Toushiro asked.

"I am certain that the changes in Juushiro are somehow related to Kotaro, however," Unohana sighed softly, "I've drawn a complete blank in trying to determine how Kotaro factors into all of this. I just cant seem to find the link, the vital piece of the puzzle that will help to clarify the situation."

Toushiro and Unohana fell silent, Rangiku had no doubt in her mind that they were both mulling over the exchange of information and formulating possibilities in their heads. She carefully crouched down and lowered Kotaro to the floor. She knew there were no reasons for her to be eavesdropping like this, she knew Toushiro would fill her in on everything he'd learned from Unohana later on. Making her mind up she went to scoop Kotaro back up, but looking down she saw that he'd vanished. She glanced towards the open living room door just in time to see Kotaro's feet disappearing as he crawled through the door.

She had just about decided to stop sneaking around like a common criminal and announce her presense by joining Toushiro and Unohana in the living room when Toushiro decided to speak up again, "I wish I knew what the nature of his power is. Because I believe if we knew what it is, then we'd have our missing piece of the puzzle."

"Do you know something Toushiro?"

"Hyourimaru hinted that Kotaro's power had grown considerably and he suspects that Kotaro's power is likely to leak out too, just like mine did. At first Hyourimaru thought Kotaro's power would stay dormant for several years, but he now believes that Kotaro's going to be like me, a fast leaner and a quick developer."

"Its reasonable to assume that could happen Toushiro," Unohana replied with a gentle tone, "It does seem like Kotaro's inherited more of your traits then Rangiku's."

"Unohana I've been watching him like a hawk. I've not seen any evidence so far to suggest that his power is leaking out. I cant even tell that his power has increased. The only thing that I have noticed is that he seems to be sleeping more and he seems to want to eat a lot more then he normally would."

"Toushiro, his increased appetite and the fact that he's sleeping longer is enough to suggest his powers are beginning to emerge. Usually a persons power can emerge in two ways. The first which happened to yourself, is where the power leaks out when the person is unaware, usually when they are asleep which is generally accompanied by vivid dreams."

Rangiku couldn't agree more. She remembered how Toushiro had unknowingly been freezing his Grandmother in his sleep. It had been years ago and luckily she'd been the one to encourage him to join the Shinigami Academy. With a small smile she also realised that had been when they'd first met each other too.

"The other way," Unohana continued, "Is that the persons power unknowingly grows quite rapidly until it peaks, then the slightest thing can disrupt it and cause that power to flare wildly out of control."

"What do you think will happen to Kotaro?" Toushiro asked sounding quite concerned.

"Its hard to say. But as there's been no evidence to suggest that Kotaro's powers have leaked out before now, I would have to assume his power is going to burst out rather then leak out."

Toushiro sighed warily, "I was hoping that he would be a leaker, at least that way I would know when it was happening and would be able to help him through it."

"What's a leaker Daddy?" Kotaro spoke up shyly, Rangiku's yes went wide and she froze.

"Kotaro!" Toushiro jumped, "How long have you been hiding behind the couch?" Toushiro admonished, "You know its impolite to listen in on other peoples conversations."

"But I thought it was rude to interrupt people when they're talking," Kotaro replied innocently, "So I was waiting for you to finish."

"That is eavesdropping and its still wrong little man," Toushiro's voice softened slightly, "I thought you were suppose to be in your room anyway?"

Panicking, Rangiku flashed out of the hallway and placed herself back in the kitchen. She then noisily grabbed the jar of cookies off the counter and slid the door open with a bang before walking the short distance between the kitchen and the living room.

"Explain yourself Kotaro," Toushiro said as she approached the door.

"Don't be mad at him Toshi," she announced brightly as she stepped into the living room, "I asked Kotaro to come and see if you'd both like a cup of tea."

Toushiro glanced between the two of them, Kotaro smiled back at him sweetly and asked, "Would Daddy and Gran-Gran like a cup of tea?"

Toushiro rubbed at his temples, "Yes, why not."

"Is Gran-Gran having a drink too?" Kotaro asked as he bounded over to Rangiku and relieved her of the jar of cookies.

"Yes please sunshine," she smiled kindly. Kotaro hopped over to the couch she were sitting on and offered her a cookie before he too plucked one out of the jar.

Rangiku returned a few minutes later with a tray in her hands, balancing a pot of tea, three teacups and a beaker of juice for Kotaro and spent the next few minutes pouring out the drinks. Once they were all settled she turned to Unohana and asked the most obvious question they'd expect her to ask, despite the fact she'd heard quite a bit already, "Captain Unohana, did you find anything out from Kotaro's test results?"

"Kotaro," Toushiro interrupted, "Easy on the cookies, you've just had a big bowl of noodles. How can you possibly have room for anything else?"

"Sweetie did you eat all of your lunch today?" Rangiku asked as she wrestled the jar of cookies away from him.

"Yes he did Rangiku," Toushiro commented, "He even had a double portion and seconds."

"Kotaro," Rangiku gasped, "You had a huge breakfast too!"

"But I've been feeling really hungry today," Kotaro grinned back at them.

"Kotaro," Unohana called softly, before she started rummaging inside her haori pocket. She then produced a fairly large bottle filled with tablets that rattled noisily, she twisted the lid off and shook a small orange, teddy bear shaped tablet onto her palm, "Come over here sunshine."

"What's that Gran-Gran?" Unohana noticed that Kotaro was eyeing up the tablet nervously, "It's from a medicine bottle but it looks like candy," Kotaro pointed out confused.

"This Kotaro, is something that I've formulated especially for you," Unohana smiled warmly. Kotaro stared back at her with a dubious expression.

"Is it medicine?" Kotaro asked narrowing his eyes.

"No its not medicine sunshine, but they are a special type of vitamin that will help you."

"Do they taste horrible?" Kotaro scrunched his nose up at the tablet.

"Kotaro sweetie," Rangiku cut in, "Gran-Gran obviously knows that they will be of a benefit to you, or she wouldn't give them to you now, would she?"

Kotaro stared back at Rangiku for several seconds before he nodded his head and turned back to Unohana, "Don't worry Kotaro, I've had them made so they taste nice and can be chewed."

"What do they do Gran-Gran?" Kotaro was still reluctant to take one.

"First, I want you to take one Kotaro. Then I will explain what they are for," Unohana prompted kindly. She then placed the small teddy shaped tablet into Kotaro's palm and watched as he held it up to his eye, "They have a lovely orange flavour."

Toushiro watched as Kotaro cautiously popped the vitamin into his mouth, after a few seconds of chewing a small smile grew on Kotaro's face, "They taste yummy Gran-Gran."

Unohana nodded knowingly, "I need you to take two with your breakfast in the morning, one at lunchtime then another one with your evening meal Kotaro."

"But what are they for?" Kotaro asked squinting his eyes at the large bottle in Unohana's hand.

"Kotaro do you know all about Shinigami and spiritual pressure?" Unohana asked patiently.

Kotaro glanced at both Rangiku and Toushiro, "We've explained to him briefly about spiritual pressure," Toushiro answered for him.

"Well you see Kotaro," Unohana continued, "One of the tests you kindly helped me with, was to check the base level of the spiritual pressure that you'd inherited from your parents. The amount you were born with has always remained at a constant level." Unohana paused to see if Kotaro was following along with her explanation, "However in the last two weeks, it seems that your spiritual pressure has grown."

Kotaro cocked his head to one side, "What does that mean Gran-Gran?"

Unohana smiled, "It just means that for now you'll probably be feeling hungrier and you'll also feel like you need more sleep."

"Oh," Kotaro's face lit up and he smiled, "So I'm allowed more cookies and naps?"

"Not exactly sunshine," Unohana smiled patiently, "These vitamins are to help supplement your meals, so that way you wont feel as hungry as you have been. We wouldn't want you to be over-eating now would we? They'll also give you a boost so you wont feel tired all the time," Unohana handed the large bottle to Kotaro and he padded over to Rangiku who took the bottle and placed it down on the table.

"As you were asking Rangiku," Unohana then turned her attention to Rangiku, "You'll be pleased to know that Kotaro doesn't have the same illness as Juushiro," Unohana paused slightly then added, "Any more."

"Any more?" Rangiku questioned, "You mean to say that he did have the same illness as Captain Ukitake?"

"That would be correct Rangiku," Unohana pulled a slip of paper from inside her pocket and unfolded it, she consulted the paper and cleared her throat, "You see when Toushiro first brought Kotaro to me, I ran all the standard tests on him that I usually would perform on Juushiro when he's having one of his episodes, seeing as the symptoms were so similar. Each test confirmed that Kotaro had the exact same type of tuberculosis as Juushiro."

"I don't understand Captain Unohana," Rangiku sat forward in her seat and cupped her chin in her hands, "I always thought that Captain Ukitake's illness was one of a kind. How is it possible that Kotaro has the exact same type of illness?"

"Had, Rangiku," Toushiro corrected, "He had the same kind of illness."

Rangiku shook her head in confusion, "But Ukitake's had his illness for centuries right?" Rangiku glanced at Unohana who nodded her confirmation, "And he's never been able to find a cure. How is it that Kotaro can have the same illness just once and then be completely free of it now?"

"The first set of tests I took confirmed Kotaro had the same illness as Juushiro. However, the second set which I took two hours later came back negative and were more consistent with having a nasty chest infection. Then the tests I took before I discharged you all from the Fourth, came back an hour later and showed that Kotaro is completely free of any illness and is perfectly healthy."

"How is that even possible?" Rangiku rose to her feet and began pacing, "I mean its good news that he's perfectly healthy, but it doesn't explain how or why this happened."

"I agree with you completely Rangiku," Unohana's gaze dropped to the sheet of paper clutched in her hand, "Which is why I've spent the best part of this week looking for answers and trying to understand just how Kotaro got sick and how he managed to recover so rapidly."

"Have you managed to find anything out?" Rangiku sat herself back down.

"Unohana why don't you tell Rangiku everything that you've told me," Toushiro rose to his feet and hoisted Kotaro over his shoulder, "Its time for Kotaro's bath anyway."

"Very well Toushiro," Unohana nodded and Toushiro left the room with a squirming Kotaro draped over his shoulder protesting loudly.

Kotaro's cries of "I want to listen too!" could be heard all the way to the bathroom until Toushiro closed the bathroom door behind him.

"I'm sorry Captain Unohana," Rangiku adjusted herself so she were more comfortable.

"Its okay Rangiku," Unohana took another sip of her tea before she started to fill Rangiku in on what she'd found out.

As it turned out, a lot of what Unohana and Toushiro had been discussing before she'd overheard them had been to do with Ukitake's sudden changes. After Unohana had finished recounting to her what she'd already overheard, Unohana surprised her by saying, "Toushiro mentioned that you'd been to the Eighth today Rangiku."

Rangiku broke away from Unohana's gaze and slid her eyes shut, "That's right. When I got the message that the SWA meeting had been cancelled, I decided to go and see if Nanao was okay."

"How was she?" Unohana asked. Rangiku glanced up and caught the pained expression on Unohana's face, "Both me and Juushiro are feeling very concerned about Nanao. Unfortunately Shunsui's been keeping his distance and wont let either of us help him. I think you're the only person now who he'd actually listen to."

"Nanao's ill Captain Unohana," Rangiku admitted, "Very ill."

"I expected as much," Unohana let out a soft sigh, "Did you happen to see Juushiro at the Eighth too?"

"Yes I did."

"When he noticed that Shunsui had actually left Nanao alone, he decided to drop by to see if Nanao was okay. He also wanted to wait for Shunsui to return so he could talk with him too."

"Shunsui told me everything," Rangiku revealed, "I know about their misunderstanding. I got them to talk things over, after getting really cross with them first."

Unohana's lip turned up at the corner in a small smile, "That's the only way either of them will listen sometimes. When a lady gets cross with them."

"It took a bit of work Captain Unohana, but me and Captain Ukitake have managed to convince Shunsui to let you check Nanao over."

"I'm pleased to hear that Rangiku," Unohana answered gratefully, "I plan on approaching her before the meeting to ask her to accompany me to the Fourth afterwards."

"I think the sooner you can check her over the better," Rangiku nodded in agreement, "I'm worried though, whether she'd be okay to attend the meeting or not. She's very.."

"Frail?" Unohana finished for her.

"Yeah," Rangiku's eyebrows knitted together, "How do you know?"

"Toushiro mentioned it."

Of course. She had told him herself about Nanao's current condition.

"Don't worry Rangiku," Unohana rose to her feet, "I'll give Nanao a good check over tomorrow and I will do everything in my power to help her and get her feeling well again."

"Thank you Captain Unohana."

"There's no need to thank me Rangiku," Unohana reached down and gathered her papers off the coffee table, "Its been lovely to see you, Toushiro and little Kotaro again. However I must return to the Fourth now."

Rangiku walked Unohana to the door and before she could leave she asked, "Captain Unohana."

"Yes Rangiku?"

"Those tablets you made for Kotaro, what are they exactly?"

Unohana smiled, "Its basically a multivitamin for children which I planned on giving to Kotaro anyway. When I noticed the sudden rise in his reiatsu I also had them specially formulated with a reiatsu stabilizer. So if his powers happened to burst out, it should hopefully prevent his pressure from flaring wildly."

"Oh I see," Rangiku smiled.

"It will take about a week for it to begin working properly, and they work best when taken with food which is why I recommend that he has them with all his meals. In the mean time I'll keep searching for answers."

"Okay thank you Captain Unohana."

Unohana bid her farewell and flashed away. Rangiku closed the front door and returned to the living room. She grabbed a cookie and began munching on it as her mind went over the last hour. It was good that Kotaro was healthy, but it was really strange how his illness had coincided with the changes in Ukitake. She felt confident that Unohana would get to the bottom of the matter and she also felt slightly better knowing that Nanao was going to get help tomorrow too.

Despite all of that though, she had a nagging feeling deep down that something bad was about to transpire.


	24. Chapter 24

Good Evening! Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed the last chapter. I could'nt fit everything I wanted to in this chapter so the second half will now be the start of chapter 25 =D Saying that, I do believe I left off in a good part *Evil grin* I've also created a group on facebook and if anyone is interested in joining it all you need to do is let me know and I'll point you in the right direction. A couple people have already joined me and its been wonderful chatting to them this week ^_^ I wont keep you much longer. Happy Reading!

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 24<p>

The next morning Toushiro and Rangiku arrived outside the First Division a little earlier then normal. The meeting wasn't due to start for another ten minutes, yet quite a few people had assembled already. They noticed a quiet spot on the opposite side of the courtyard that was a good few metres away from the main crowd of people, so they crossed over to it. Neither of them were in a particular mood to mingle this morning.

As they crossed over the courtyard they saw Momo, Isane, Izuru and Shuhei to their left chatting together. A little bit away from them was Renji who was laughing loudly at Rukia, who was attending her first official meeting as a Lieutenant. Byakuya was a short way away keeping a close eye on the two lively Lieutenants. Omaeda was being chewed out by an irate Soifon who was screaming at him about 'Crumbs'.

There was the swish of Shunpo and the massive form of Komamura materialized a little to their right followed a few seconds later by Tetsuzaemon, "Captain Hitsugaya," the large Seventh Division Captain greeted politely.

"Sajin," Toushiro replied with a nod.

Over in a far corner well away from the main group of people, were the Twelfth Division leaders who were pretty much keeping themselves to themselves. Either that or everyone else were giving them a wide berth. Unsurprisingly, Kenpachi and Yachiru hadn't shown up yet.

Rangiku kept scanning around looking for a flash of pink, "I don't see them Toshi, do you think they'll come?" She asked referring to Shunsui and Nanao.

"There's still time for them to arrive, the meeting doesn't start for another ten minutes," Toushiro reminded her.

"I don't see Captain Ukitake or Captain Unohana either," Rangiku frowned as she returned her focus back to Toushiro. Where they were standing now, they had a good view of the courtyard and its occupants, but they were a good distance away from everyone so they could talk freely without the risk of being overheard.

"They'll be here shortly," Toushiro replied as he raised his hand to acknowledge Momo who'd spotted them and was now waving enthusiastically at them, "They generally arrive together about five minutes or so beforehand."

"I hope she's okay," Rangiku had a distant look in her eye, Toushiro had no doubt in his mind that she was trying to seek out Nanao's presense.

"Rangiku," Toushiro frowned, he noticed that Rangiku was fidgeting with her hair. She only ever did that when she was worked up about something, "Is Nanao really that sick?"

"Hmm," Rangiku was hardly paying attention to him.

He sighed a little, "You came home pretty upset yesterday, but you haven't told me the full story yet. What exactly is going on? Its not like you to skip out on the details."

Rangiku hadn't appeared to have heard him so he cleared his throat loudly, letting her know he expected an answer. "Rangiku!" He raised his voice slightly in annoyance when she failed to respond yet again, "Are you even listening to me?"

Rangiku was pulled out of her reverie by his voice and she quietly replied, "I'm sorry, what was you saying Toshi?"

"Forget it," he huffed, "I only asked whether you were going to tell me what the hell is going on. But its obvious you don't want to talk about it," he folded his arms into his sleeves and slid his eyes shut.

"Its quite long and complicated Toshi," Rangiku sighed and rested her head against his shoulder and draped her arms around his neck. Toushiro responded by unfolding his arms and snaking one around her waist while his spare hand came up to rest against one of her hands.

"I'm sure I can keep up. The way you've been acting, I can only assume its something serious."

Deciding to let Toushiro know the whole truth, Rangiku spent the next few minutes recounting in a hushed voice, everything that'd happened at the Eighth the day before. She even told him about the events that had taken place whilst they'd been away in the World of the Living. When she'd finished she noticed that Toushiro had a slight scowl on his face.

"I was right. It is serious," he said in a low voice, "Rangiku do you realise how much of a precarious position Kyouraku is in right now?"

"He did mention what would happen to Nanao if word got out about her destabilizing reiatsu. Then there's the whole situation with Shunsui's injuries," Rangiku's eyes were beginning to shine, "Everything is such a mess. I don't want anything bad to happen to Nanao."

"The consequences for Nanao would be dire," Toushiro admitted, "But they would be even more so for Kyouraku if the Head-Captain finds out. Especially since Kyouraku hasn't reported the state of affairs to him and he's essentially been covering up the whole situation. Its likely the Head-Captain would punish him severely, its most likely that he would strip him of his Captaincy."

Rangiku felt her stomach plummet, "My goodness, would he really?"

"I wouldn't put it past him," Toushiro hesitated before he continued, "He's likely to punish anyone else who's involved too," the faintest hint of caution could be heard in his voice.

Rangiku lifted her head off his shoulder to look him in the face, "Toshi, they're my best friends, I cant just turn my back on them. Not now."

"I don't expect you too," he answered softly, "I just want you to be careful though."

Rangiku was saved from having to say anything else by the timely arrival of Ukitake and Unohana. The pair dropped out of shunpo several metres in front of them, hand in hand.

"What the hell?" Toushiro commented quietly having caught a glimpse of Ukitake, "What's with his hair?"

Rangiku glanced over to Ukitake, "Yeah its turned black again," she replied unfazed.

"Yes but, its suppose to be white," Toushiro answered as he tried very hard not to stare.

"Captain Unohana mentioned to you that there'd been a change to his health. Don't make a big deal out of it," Rangiku had to try very hard not to roll her eyes, "Besides its not permanent."

"Its not that," Toushiro lowered his voice, "Its just strange to see it black. I'm so used to seeing him with white hair. It just took me by surprise, that's all."

Toushiro leant back against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest. Ukitake and Unohana had spotted Rangiku and himself and were now walking across to them. In the few short metres they'd walked, Ukitake's hair had already faded from a glossy jet black to a silvery grey colour.

Toushiro quirked his eyebrow in surprise and shook his head. How was that even possible?

Ukitake must have caught his baffled expression, because a huge grin formed on his face, "Surely my hair doesn't look that bad Toushiro."

"Tch," Toushiro smirked, "It certainly is unusual."

"Good Morning Captain Ukitake," Rangiku beamed genuinely happy to see him. She rushed forward to give him a hug.

"Good Morning Rangiku," Ukitake replied pleasantly.

Toushiro cleared his throat, "Ukitake," Rangiku, Ukitake and Unohana all turned their attentions to him, "Rangiku's filled me in on everything that's been going on," he then glanced at Unohana, "I assume you've told Unohana everything too?"

"Yes I have Toushiro," Ukitake's expression turned very serious.

"As soon as the meetings finished, I'm having Nanao accompany me to the Fourth," Unohana replied in a gentle tone.

A huge commotion of noise had them all glancing across the courtyard. The source of the noise happened to be Kenpachi and Yachiru who'd finally arrived for the meeting "Yay Kenny we made it!"

Rangiku sighed, "Everyone's here now apart from Shunsui and Nanao."

"Don't worry, Shunsui will come," Ukitake reassured, "He promised."

"He's most likely waiting till the last minute to arrive," Unohana agreed.

Rangiku glanced over to the massive white doors bearing the First Divisions kanji, that were slowly swinging open, "The doors are opening."

Right on cue there was the distinctive swish of shunpo and the rustling of robes as Shunsui materialized between Ukitake and Rangiku, carrying a very sickly looking Nanao in his arms. He gently placed her back down on her feet and slowly let go of her, like he was expecting her to topple over.

There was an awkward moment of silence where neither of them really knew what to say. Toushiro took the opportunity to glance at both Shunsui and Nanao. Shunsui was donning his usual pink haori and straw hat. To anyone who happened to quickly glance at him, he would appear his usual self. However Toushiro noticed the slight clenching of his jaw and the dark smudges under his eyes where he'd obviously not slept at all last night.

And then there was Nanao.

Toushiro didn't even know where to begin. When Rangiku had mentioned that Nanao was ill, he'd never imagined her to be this ill. Looking past all the obvious signs of illness, like her deathly pallor and her emaciated body. He noticed that she appeared nervous, agitated and quite jumpy. Nanao must have sensed his gaze on her, because she glanced up and caught his eye before quickly averting her gaze again.

"You made it Shunsui," Ukitake spoke up breaking the silence, "I was worried you might be late."

"I said I would be here on time Juu buddy," Shunsui let out a forced chuckle, "Retsu, Ran-chan, Kiddo," he greeted in a falsely cheerful tone.

Feeling uncomfortable at the awkwardness of the situation, Toushiro glanced up and noticed that everybody else were beginning to file their way through the now open doors, "Come on Rangiku," he reached for her hand and began guiding her towards the meeting hall, "We best get inside."

Rangiku glanced back over her shoulder after they'd put a little distance between themselves and the three Captains, she was pleased to see Ukitake ushering Shunsui across the courtyard while Unohana walked steadily beside Nanao. Rangiku felt relieved knowing that they just had to get through this meeting then they could begin to find out what was making Nanao so ill.

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><p>The meeting had been going on for quite some time. With no clock in the room it was hard to judge exactly how long it'd been going on for. If Rangiku had to venture a guess, she would have to say it'd been running for a good hour or so at this point. It seemed the Head-Captain had a lot to discuss today and he just kept going on and on and on.<p>

Rangiku knew she should be listening to what were being said, but for the last ten minutes she hadn't been paying an iota of attention to the meeting. Her focus instead had been on Nanao, who appeared to be shivering violently.

Rangiku felt confused by it at first. It was common knowledge that the meeting hall was notoriously hot due to the fiery nature of the Head-Captains Zanpakuto. Even today on a chilly morning, the room felt pretty damn toasty to Rangiku.

She glanced at Nanao wondering if it was possible her friend had a fever, but her face lacked the tell-tale flush and instead it looked unnaturally pale.

Rangiku also noticed that Nanao kept clenching and unclenching her hands. When a small bead of sweat trickled its way down the side of Nanao's face, it dawned on Rangiku that Nanao wasn't feverish or feeling the cold. She was most likely feeling anxious and agitated, she may even be on the verge of having a panic attack.

She quickly glanced around the room. Everyone was either focused on the Head-Captain, or in their own little worlds just like she'd been.

"Nanao," she called in a whisper, barely making a sound, "Nanao!"

It appeared that Nanao couldn't hear her, but Rangiku noticed that Toushiro turned his head ever so slightly, he had an acute sense of hearing. Yet Rangiku knew if she tried to gain Nanao's attention by calling her any louder, then it would attract everyone else's attention too. She glanced over to Renji who was standing on Nanao's left and noticed that he kept occasionally glancing at Nanao out the corner of his eye.

Rather then trying to make herself heard again, she changed tactics and reached for Nanao's hand instead and gave it a little squeeze. She couldn't help but notice just how clammy Nanao's hand felt.

Nanao jumped at the contact and let out a small gasp. Still holding Nanao's hand, Rangiku leant closer and whispered, "Nanao, are you feeling okay?"

Nanao let out a shaky breath and shook her head. Rangiku now realised she was indeed, quietly having a panic attack.

Rangiku had no idea how she could currently help Nanao. Its not like she could exactly walk out in the middle of a meeting. If only she could attract Shunsui's attention somehow, then maybe he could calm her with his reiatsu. She glanced at Nanao once again. It was worth a shot.

With her spare hand she reached forward and gently gripped Toushiro's elbow and gave it a little nudge. She felt him tense up and after he gave the room a quick glance he discreetly slid his left foot back and slowly twisted his body to the side and glanced over his shoulder at her.

Without saying a word she cocked her head to her side and Toushiro's gaze shifted to Nanao. He briefly glanced back at Rangiku before returning to his former position. Rangiku sighed internally, had he even understood the message that she'd been trying to convey?

Just as she was planning a way to attract Shunsui's attention, she saw Toushiro take a small step to his left and then discreetly elbow Shunsui in his side.

Shunsui tipped his hat over his face and shifted all his weight to his right and muttered, "What is it?"

Toushiro met his eye briefly and jabbed his thumb over his shoulder indicating Rangiku and Nanao, he then stepped back to his original position. Keeping his face covered up with his hat, Shunsui twisted slightly and caught Rangiku's eye.

Rangiku pointed at Nanao and mouthed the words 'Not feeling well.'

Shunsui tried to crane his neck to see Nanao but with her standing directly behind him, it was impossible for him to see her. So after giving Rangiku a brief nod, he faced forward again, adjusted his hat to cover his eyes and then folded his arms across his massive chest.

Rangiku felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end as Shunsui's reiatsu reached out and wrapped itself around Nanao. When Rangiku looked to her left again to check how Nanao was doing, she was alarmed to see Nanao swaying on her feet.

She went to drape her arm around Nanao's shoulders to help steady her. But when she brushed her hand against Nanao's shoulder, she heard a crackle of static which was immediately followed by a small shock running through her fingers. Hissing at the pain, she had no choice but to pull away.

And that's when she felt it. A small fluctuation in Nanao's pressure.

When she'd been at the Eighth the day before, and even though she'd been in close proximity to Nanao the whole time she'd been there. Not once had she felt even the slightest hint of Nanao's reiatsu. It'd almost been like she were a regular soul that possessed no spiritual pressure whatsoever.

Unfortunately though the small flicker Rangiku had just detected, didn't feel as though it belonged to Nanao. It felt dark, heavy and very.. unnatural.

"Nanao!" Rangiku cried in a hushed voice, she was feeling very alarmed now.

Nanao's body had taken on a soft purple glow and it seemed like she was struggling against something. Rangiku felt Nanao's pressure fluctuate again and this time she thought she caught a hint of Nanao's own unique pressure, before the darker pressure became dominant again.

Rangiku racked her brains to figure out what the problem could be. Then she remembered what Shunsui had told her, about how Nanao seemed to react to his pressure.

"Shunsui!" she hissed quietly trying to gain his attention, surely he must be aware of the situation, "Shunsui!" she called a bit louder then she'd intended.

"QUIET!" The Head-Captain bellowed as he banged his wooden staff on the floor, "This is a meeting. Whoever is muttering cut it out and pay attention!"

Fortunately Shunsui had sensed Nanao's discomfort and had withdrawn his reiatsu, however Nanao seemed to be struggling to regain control of herself. Rangiku glanced nervously around the room and was horrified to see that several pairs of eyes were glancing in their direction. She caught Ukitake's eye and couldn't mistake the look of horror on his face. Renji had taken a discreet step away from Nanao, even Byakuya had tossed a look over his shoulder.

Without any warning Nanao lurched forward and pushed her way through the gap between Shunsui and Toushiro, causing both of them to stumble slightly.

"Nanao-chan!" Shunsui called as Nanao hurried towards the large white doors.

"Nanao!" Rangiku made to go after her too, but Toushiro stepped in her way and threw an arm out to make her stay put.

"No Rangiku," Toushiro had a stern look in his eyes. One that Rangiku didn't see very often these days. It was the same look he used to give her when she were just his Lieutenant and not his wife. It was his Captains look and Rangiku knew that he wasn't requesting her to stay put. It was an order.

Nanao had weakly pulled the door open and had already disappeared out of sight. Shunsui who'd been a few paces behind her had just reached the door and was just about to wrench it open when the Head-Captain cracked his wooden staff against the floor and boomed, "SHUNSUI BACK IN LINE!"

Shunsui paused and glanced back over his shoulder giving Yamamoto a fierce look, "Sorry Yama-jii, I cant do that," he then turned away and shouldered his way out the door.

There was a stunned silence in the meeting hall and all that could be heard was Shunsui's anguished cry of "NANAO-CHAN STOP!"

Whispers began to break out amongst the occupants of the room and Toushiro was still trying to prevent Rangiku from going after her two friends, "Toshi you've got to let me go after them."

"I said no," he replied sharply, "Will you just stop and think for a second. Don't get involved," Toushiro had spun around to face Rangiku and both of his hands were resting against her shoulders preventing her from going anywhere.

They stared back at each other. Both forgetting they were in the middle of a meeting. Rangiku knew that Toushiro was only doing this to prevent her from getting into trouble. Toushiro's face went blurry and she broke her gaze away from his, unable to meet his eye any longer.

"ENOUGH!" The Head-Captains voice boomed, everyone froze and fell silent instantly, "IF ANYONE DARES TO INTERRUPT THIS MEETING ANY FURTHER OR LEAVES THIS ROOM WITHOUT PERMISSION, I SHALL STRIP YOU OF YOUR RANK!"

Toushiro dropped his hands from her shoulders and ran them down her arms before he turned to face forward again. However one of his arms reached back and he grasped her hand in his, knowing she needed the comfort.

* * *

><p>"Nanao-chan wait!" Shunsui yelled as he burst out the main entrance of the first and stepped out into the courtyard. His eyes roamed the courtyard for Nanao fearing that she'd gotten too much of a head start on him. Under normal circumstances it would have been no problem for him to catch up with her. However with Nanao having little to no spiritual pressure to detect lately, if he'd lost track of her it'd be damn near impossible to locate her whereabouts.<p>

Luckily though she hadn't made it very far. His eyes landed on her as she was hurrying across the courtyard on unsteady legs. A quick shunpo placed him directly in her path and he caught her easily before she fell to her knees, her legs finally giving out on her.

"Here let me help you Nanao-chan," Shunsui went to wrap his arms around her waist but she placed one weak hand on his chest and tried to push him away. Shunsui couldn't help but feel a sense of deja vu.

"I don't need help," she gasped weakly.

"Don't be silly," he eased her down gently so she was sitting on the ground, "You're not well," Shunsui pulled away and ran his eyes over her, he could tell she was feeling very agitated.

"I'm fine," Nanao turned her face away from him.

"We both know that's a lie Nanao-chan," he crouched down to her level and tried to place his palm against her cheek, but she batted his hand away, "Nanao?"

"Just stay away from me!" She yelled angrily as she pulled herself clumsily back to her feet.

"Don't sat that Nanao-chan," she tried walking away from him but he was back by her side in a second, "I'm just trying to help you," he replied in a gentle tone.

"Why!" She demanded as she stepped away from him again. Shunsui frowned and was about to answer when Nanao cried out again, "How can you still stand to be around me!" Tears were beginning to leak from her eyes.

"Nanao you're agitated, please try to calm down," His tone was even despite his own anxieties. Nanao was literally breaking down before his very eyes. He desperately wanted to hold her, to hug her and to tell her everything would be okay. But whenever he stepped closer to her, she would back away from him.

"Why would you still want to be around me," Nanao cried and turned her back on him, "I'm a horrible person."

"Nanao-chan I love you," Shunsui took a careful step towards her, "Why wouldn't I want to be around you?" He took another step forward and gently rested his hands on her shoulders. She tensed up beneath his fingers but she didn't try to move away.

A tense silence fell between them, which Nanao was the first to break.

"I know what I did to you," she admitted quietly with a small sob, "I hurt you."

"Nanao-"

"I remember everything," she shrugged his hands off her shoulders and stepped away, cradling her head in her hands, "Everything came rushing back during the meeting."

"It doesn't matter Nanao-chan!" Shunsui's eyes went wide, this couldn't be good. He stepped closer to her again and reached out for her.

"STAY AWAY FROM ME!" Nanao screamed. Her skin was glowing purple and she was shaking violently. The tiny amount of reiatsu she still possessed flickered and spluttered, "I CANT be around you!"

"Nanao," Shunsui raised his voice in warning, "You have to calm yourself down," he held his hands out in front of him and tried to get a bit nearer to her.

"No!" She snapped back. Her eyes were turning red and puffy and her chest hitched as she tried to repress the sob that'd been building up "I just need to get out of here. I need to get away from you."

"And go where Nanao-chan?" Shunsui was trying very hard to remain calm, "Where would you go?"

Nanao shook her head and several more tears flowed down her cheeks. She lifted her hands to her face and covered her eyes with her palms, clenching her fingers into her hair, "I don't know."

"The reason you don't know, is because you're not thinking straight," he'd managed to take another step closer while her eyes were covered up. He gently wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his chest, "If you were calm, you wouldn't be saying these things."

"I cant cope," she mumbled into his chest. He felt a small flicker of her reiatsu and her hands fisted into his robes, "I cant cope any more. I have to get out of here."

"You know I cant let you go Nanao," he'd brought both his hands up to rest gently around Nanao's wrists, just in case she decided to bolt, "Just hang in there okay. For me."

Nanao's pressure spiked and she tried to step back from him, however the firm grip Shunsui had on both of her wrists was unbreakable. She struggled against his hold and the more frantic she became the more unstable her pressure grew.

"Nanao you have to stop," Shunsui yelled in alarm, as her pressure peaked he felt a surge of static emanating from her body. It crackled all around them and his fingers were prickling painfully. But he refused to let her go.

The dark reiatsu so far had remained pretty quiet, yet Shunsui had been aware of it simmering under the surface. No doubt sitting back and waiting as it allowed Nanao's own reiatsu to destabilize. If it'd been planning on taking over this whole time, wouldn't it be easier for it if Nanao couldn't put up much of a fight?

However in his refusal to release Nanao, it seemed to have angered it slightly and Shunsui could feel its presense slowly wearing down what little pressure remained of Nanao's. It was slowing taking over and dominating her.

A huge burst of pressure slammed into him which sent his straw hat and pink haori sailing across the courtyard. The wind blowing around him was causing his robes to flap around his body and his hair to whip around his face. Through narrowed eyes he could see black smoky tendrils radiating out from Nanao's feet and mingling with the purple glow that had surrounded her body. He glanced in horror at her face and saw inky black iris's staring back menacingly at him.

The sheer pressure pouring from Nanao had disintegrated her hair clip and her loose strands of hair were flapping wildly around her face.

"NANAO!" Shunsui screamed in anguish, "I..," he tightened his grip on her wrists, "Wont.." he slipped into a stance so he felt more balanced on his feet, "Let you take her away from me!"

Shunsui released his own pressure, he didn't even bother to hold back. He'd managed to force the dark presense into submission before and he had no qualms about doing it again. His only concern was Nanao's welfare. He just hoped her weakened body could hold out.

The dark pressure reacted instantly. Shunsui pushed against it trying to force it to back down, it was putting up a hell of a fight. However he knew if he stuck at it, the dark reiatsu would retreat. It was no match for his vast store of energy.

So it came as a huge shock when his own spiritual pressure began to fluctuate.

At first it felt as though his hands, arms, feet and legs were growing numb. But then his pressure dipped without warning and he struggled to regain it to its previous level. He couldn't explain it, his pressure was beginning to fall away at an alarming rate.

His head swam and he felt as though he was being sucked dry of his reiatsu. It felt almost the same as if he'd received a fatal wound on a battlefield and the blood loss had caused his body to grow weak and heavy and very cold.

When his vision began to blur, he knew he was in trouble but regardless of his discomfort he still held on to Nanao refusing to back down. The dark pressure could suck him dry of all his reiatsu, but no way in hell was he losing Nanao too.

The dark spiritual pressure sky-rocketed and he felt Nanao struggling against him. He felt a heavy weight press into his chest and when he glanced down he saw both of Nanao's palms trying to push him away. Was Nanao aware of what was going on? Was she still with him?

He met her eye and saw that one eye was her usual dark blue, while the other still had that eerie inky blackness about it. The black eye was full of malice while the blue had an odd apologetic look about it. Shunsui didn't have time to ponder why that was, because Nanao's hands were beginning to glow a ghostly blue colour.

The light intensified to an almost blinding level and he slammed his eyes shut. The smell of burning fabric reached his nostrils and he felt his chest burning where Nanao had placed her palms against him. He heard a small gasp and then he heard her mutter the the words "Soren-Sokatsui!"

The explosion deafened him. His vision went white. Every single nerve in his body screamed out at him. His body felt weightless and as though it were soaring through the air. That was until he felt his back plough back down into the ground, the hard ground beneath him cracked and shattered. He couldn't find the air to breathe, let alone cry out in pain.

Why couldn't he breathe? It felt like his throat was burning and he couldn't seem to draw enough oxygen into his lungs. His white vision had now dulled, yet he could see darkness creeping in on the edges of his vision.

He couldn't breathe. At first he thought he'd just been winded, but he couldn't catch his breath. He tried to call out to Nanao, but he couldn't produce any sound. His body felt weak and numb and he couldn't move a muscle. His chest felt like it was on fire.

With a huge effort which was both excruciating and agonising, he managed to turn his face to one side. His vision was dwindling quite rapidly now and through the haze of pain he managed to focus on a small black form a good hundred metres away from him.

Nanao.

Try as he might he just couldn't produce any noise, yet he felt slightly relieved when he saw her stir. He guessed she were in as much pain as he was. He saw her scramble to her knees, then watched in utter confusion as a senkaimon materialized before her.

Nanao-chan?

He was straining his eyes to see and at the same time desperately clinging onto consciousness. He saw her stumble weakly to her feet, she glanced back over her shoulder at him before turning around and disappearing into the gateway.

"Nanao-chan!" He managed to wheeze out.

By the time the gate had closed and vanished, Shunsui had lost the battle to remain conscious and his head flopped heavily back to the ground.

* * *

><p>Dont hate me D: *Runs and hides* Poor Nanao's finally broken and Shunsui's gotten all caught up in it. And he still refuses to lay a hand on her *sniff*<p> 


	25. Chapter 25

Hello Everybody. Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. Everythings starting to come together now and things will be made crystal clear over the next few chapters... Hopefully. Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 25<p>

With the Head-Captains threat hanging over their heads, the only thing they'd been able to do was wait. They were all aware that something terrible had transpired outside the walls of the First Division. They'd all felt it. It'd been impossible not to feel it. The whole of the Seireitei had probably felt it. Yet it appeared the Head-Captain had decided to turn a blind eye to the situation and had been ploughing on with the meeting regardless.

It'd been ten minutes since both Shunsui and Nanao's spiritual pressures had vanished and nobody liked what that may indicate.

"And that concludes this meeting," The Head-Captain rounded up.

Ukitake snapped to attention on hearing those words. He knew once the Head-Captain dismissed them all, that he would have to make a quick departure to avoid being called back by Yamamoto. Which in this instance, was a real possibility.

Ukitake stared straight ahead resolutely avoiding the Head-Captains eyes as the old man swept his gaze over the assembled Captains. He felt Yamamoto's eyes burning a hole in the side of his head, yet Ukitake still refused to look at him. It was vital that he got to Shunsui and Nanao as soon as possible. Who knows who the Head-Captain would call upon to place the squad Eight leaders under arrest. It certainly wouldn't be himself, he was involved and the Head-Captain knew that. The same could be said for Unohana too. To Ukitake the logical choices would be either Soifon and her Stealth Force or possibly Kuchiki or Komamura. Either way Ukitake knew they had to act fast and get both Shunsui and Nanao to the Fourth to help delay their eventual arrest.

The Head-Captains gaze finally shifted from Ukitake and flicked back across the room, travelling down the opposite line of Captains. Out the corner of his eye, he saw the Head-Captain pause when he reached Unohana, who was also avoiding his gaze. Yamamoto let out a low growl and continued down the line of Captains. When he reached the empty spot where Shunsui and Nanao had been standing, he paused and stared at the spot for an agonizingly long time.

Ukitake chanced a look just as the Head-Captains gaze flickered back to him. It was only a brief look, but Ukitake wanted to dissolve right then and there. Yamamoto broke eye contact and levelled his heavy gaze on Toushiro.

"Captain Hitsugaya," The Head-Captains voice shattered the tense silence.

"Sir."

"Stay. Everyone else is dismissed."

As soon as those words left the Head-Captains mouth, Ukitake headed for the door with accelerated steps. As soon as he stepped out into the corridor and left the meeting hall, he ran.

* * *

><p>"Captain Ukitake!" Rangiku yelled at the top of her voice as she sprinted full speed down the hallway, trying to catch up with him, "Captain Ukitake!"<p>

She saw him skid to a halt and glance back over his shoulder, "Rangiku," he then turned on his heel allowing to her to catch up with him, "Toushiro's right. You really shouldn't get involved."

"But I'm already involved." As soon as she'd closed the distance between them she reached for him and latched onto his arm, "Please, you need my help too."

"Very well, come on," he hurried forward and broke into another run, "We need to act fast."

Rangiku easily kept her pace up with him, "Their pressures..." she began.

"I know," Ukitake replied without glancing back, instead he just kept running, "I cant feel them either."

"What do you suppose the Head-Captain wants with Toshi?"

Ukitake didn't answer her question right away and Rangiku could sense his hesitation, "Captain Ukitake?"

"It seems the Head-Captain has issued a warrant of arrest for Shunsui and Nanao. I believe he's given the orders to Toushiro to see that its carried out."

"You cant be serious!" Rangiku nearly tripped over in shock, "But.. What.. Surely.."

Ukitake reached for her hand and pulled her along without breaking his sprint, "Like I said. We need to act fast and hope like hell we can get both Shunsui and Nanao to the Fourth as soon as possible."

"Why?"

"Because if they are both admitted to the Fourth as patients, then on medical grounds they cant be arrested until they are considered fit and well enough to be discharged."

"Oh I think I see now."

"If we can get them to the Fourth then at least we can bide ourselves some time whilst we figure out what the exact problem with Nanao is," they hurtled around the final corner and they both saw the Firsts main entrance looming up ahead.

They charged through the massive white doors and skidded to a stop once they caught sight of Shunsui's discarded pink haori. Rangiku hurried over to it and plucked it up off the ground. She clutched the pink haori to her chest and started rotating on the spot, sweeping her eyes over the wide courtyard.

When her eyes fell on Shunsui's unconscious form several metres away, the silken fabric slipped from her fingers and fluttered to the ground.

"SHUNSUI!" She cried out in alarm before running over to him. Ukitake got to him first with a well executed shunpo.

"Shunsui can you hear me?" Ukitake had knelt down next to him and was patting his cheek trying to rouse him, "Shunsui!"

Rangiku's eyes travelled over Shunsui's prone form. When she swept her gaze over his chest area she felt her stomach churn slightly at the sight. Shunsui's Shinigami robes that usually covered the front of his torso had been singed away, exposing his well muscled chest and stomach. Running from his waist and up to his solar plexus was a large angry looking scorch mark. The worst of the damage however was in the direct centre of his chest, where the skin was blackened and charred and congealed with blood. Thin wisps of steam were rising up in swirls from the charred bits of skin. His chest was rising and falling erratically as he struggled to breathe properly. No doubt a combination of the pain and shock.

"Shun-kun!" Rangiku dropped down to her knees on Shunsui's other side and reached for his hand.

Shunsui drew in a sharp breath which he quickly released in a painful gasp. Seeing this Ukitake patted Shunsui's face a bit more forcibly, "Come on Shunsui, wake up damn it."

After a few more laboured breaths, Shunsui started to stir. His eyes finally peeked open but he just couldn't seem to catch his breath. His grey eyes focused on Ukitake then darted to Rangiku, "Juu.. Ran.." he managed to gasp out.

He slid his eyes closed again and Ukitake slapped his face sharply, "Don't go back to sleep Shunsui. Stay with us okay."

Rangiku heard several voices and she glanced up to see everyone else beginning to file out of the First division. They received several stunned glances but she tuned them out. She heard two swishes of shunpo and then a gentle hand rested against her shoulder. Rangiku glanced up to see Unohana hovering over her with Isane just to one side. She moved away from Shunsui's side and Unohana took her place. Isane knelt down next to her Captain ready to offer her assistance.

Unohana flicked her wrist and her hand began to glow a soft blue which Rangiku recognized as a diagnostic kido. Unohana's hand hovered over Shunsui's chest and she slowly moved her hand around the injury, "You're having trouble breathing Shunsui," she stated quietly, "I'm not surprised. Your diaphragm has been badly damaged."

"His diaphragm?" Rangiku questioned.

"Its the large muscle between your lungs and your stomach which helps you to breathe Rangiku," Isane supplied helpfully.

The soft blue kido lighting up Unohana's hand flickered slightly then changed colour to the customary green of a healing kido. As she got to work on easing Shunsui's discomfort she instructed Isane to send for a relief team to transport Shunsui to the Fourth. Whilst she were repairing the worst of the damage she gently ask, "Shunsui can you tell me what happened?"

"She ran away... I tried... To stop her," Shunsui seemed to be breathing a little easier but his voice was very hoarse, "She knows."

"Knows what Shunsui?" Ukitake asked frowning.

"Everything," he wheezed slightly, "It came" he paused while he caught his breath again, "Back to her."

Rangiku who'd been standing back a bit stepped around the small group and knelt down near Shunsui's head, "That's why she seemed so agitated in the meeting."

Shunsui made a small grunt of confirmation, "She's upset. Please you must go after her."

Of course she would be, Rangiku thought. Nanao hadn't any memory of that unfortunate morning. For it to suddenly come rushing back to her like that. Hell she had every right to be freaked out by it.

Unohana made a small noise of disbelief. Ukitake glanced at her before asking, "What is it Retsu?"

"Shunsui your spiritual pressure," Unohana paused while she searched for the right words, "Its very low. In fact its barely registering."

Shunsui awkwardly lifted his arm and grabbed the front of Ukitake's robes and pulled him closer, "Juu you have to go after her."

"Easy there Shunsui," Ukitake tried to prise Shunsui's hand free, "We will go after her. Just let us take care of you first okay."

"NO!" Shunsui was beginning to grow agitated himself, "Go after her now."

"Calm down Shunsui," Unohana warned, "Nanao's very ill and its obvious her spiritual pressure is dangerously unstable," Unohana flicked her wrist and the healing kido faded, "I think in this situation it would be for the best if I went after her instead."

"Do you know where she ran off to Shunsui?" Rangiku asked.

Shunsui tilted his head away from them all. They could all see the hurt and pain in his eyes. He slid his eyes shut and mumbled, "I saw a senkaimon open."

"She went into to the precipice world!" Ukitake's eyes went wide, "With unstable reiatsu!"

Unohana rose to her feet just as a small medical team arrived in the courtyard. The team bustled over to her and she relayed the instructions to transport Shunsui to the Fourth.

"Shunsui," Unohana knelt back down beside him. Shunsui opened his eyes and stared back at her, "I'm going to leave you in Isane's capable hands. I've just patched you up for now to ease your discomfort. Isane will continue on with your treatment at the Fourth."

Shunsui had an uneasy look in his face.

"Don't worry I will find Nanao for you," She placed her palm over Shunsui's eyes and sent a little of her energy into him. The Inemuri took immediate affect and Shunsui was soon unconscious. The medical team bustled around Shunsui and transferred him onto a stretcher. After a few final words Isane and the medical team departed.

"What do we do now?" Rangiku asked glancing between Ukitake and Unohana.

They all felt a slight chill in the air and Rangiku knew why without needing to look. She glanced over her shoulder anyway just as Toushiro stepped out into the courtyard. He spotted them and within seconds he was by her side with a deep scowl on his face.

"What's the situation?" He asked still in Captain mode.

"I've just had a medical team escort Shunsui to the Fourth, Toushiro," Unohana replied calmly.

"I see," the scowl on his face had eased slightly, "Is he..?"

"In a bad way. But he will pull through," Unohana assured confidently, "I've placed him in Isane's care."

Toushiro gave a little nod, "And what about Nanao?" His gaze flickered to Rangiku.

"Shun-kun mentioned that he saw Nanao pass through a senkaimon before he lost consciousness," Rangiku didn't know why, but she couldn't quite meet Toushiro's eye.

"Then retrieving Nanao from the World of the Living should be our main priority," Toushiro commented.

"Toushiro," Ukitake had an uneasy look on his face, "Did the Head-Captain-"

"Yes," Toushiro folded his arms across his chest, "He's ordered me to take them both into custody."

Rangiku felt a lead brick settle in her stomach, "Toshi you cant!"

"Rangiku," Toushiro interrupted, "Don't argue with me. We don't have the time."

"But she's ill Toshi!" Rangiku shot back hotly. Her reiatsu rose slightly, along with her temper, "How could you even accept those orders!"

Toushiro's reiatsu rose too and the large courtyard suddenly felt quite chilly, "Its not like I could refuse them Rangiku."

"So you're going to toss Nanao in a cell then?" Rangiku's hands shook and her eyes were beginning to shine.

"Enough Rangiku!" Toushiro yelled, "I have no intentions of tossing her in a cell," Toushiro looked away from her and glanced over to Unohana and Ukitake, "If only you'd see that we're actually in quite a fortunate position."

"Fortunate how!" Rangiku couldn't quite keep the anger out of her voice and Toushiro chose to ignore her.

Ukitake answered the question instead, "Its fortunate for us that the Head-Captain picked out Toushiro. He knows the full situation, unlike someone else. For example if he'd chosen Soifon, we all know she would follow the Head-Captains orders unwaveringly. Which would be bad for both Shunsui and Nanao."

Toushiro sighed, "I cant arrest Shunsui whilst he's in the Fourth receiving medical treatment. Why do you think I took my time leaving the meeting Rangiku?"

Rangiku knew now, but she remained quiet.

"I took my time so you three would have the chance to get them both to the Fourth," Toushiro continued, "So, are you going to stop arguing with me now?"

A small pained smile crept onto Rangiku's face, "I just want to help Nanao."

Unohana stepped away from them and used her sword to open up a senkaimon, "I take it Toushiro that you'll be accompanying me?"

"Yes, it would look suspicious if I didn't," Toushiro replied as he stepped over to Unohana.

"Juushiro are you-" Unohana began.

"I'm going to stay here Retsu," Ukitake finished quietly, "You know what Shunsui's like. One of us should stay close to him," with that said Ukitake flashed away.

Toushiro glanced at Rangiku, "Well are you coming Rangiku? I thought you wanted to help Nanao?"

"I do."

As Rangiku stepped over to them, an unusual and unexpected burst of spiritual pressure filled the air. It was quite raw and immature. It took them all a few seconds to recognize the amplified presense but when the penny dropped Rangiku gasped, "That's Kotaro!"

"His power, its emerged already," Toushiro's eyes widened in disbelief, "But its so soon."

"Its possible the clash of spiritual pressure that took place between Shunsui and Nanao, was enough to disrupt his power and cause it to burst out," Unohana commented from a clinical point of view.

They could tell from the feel of Kotaro's pressure that he had zero control over it. The flare of pressure kept pulsating and sending out a cool strong breeze. Rangiku could could feel every inch of her skin tingling, "Toshi-"

"I know he needs help," Toushiro stepped away from the gate, "Rangiku, go with Unohana and find Nanao."

"But-"

"Its fine," Toushiro cut her off, "I'll see to Kotaro. Just make sure you get Nanao to the Fourth."

Rangiku still had a conflicted look on her face but she gave him a little nod, "Okay."

"We need to get moving Rangiku," Unohana prodded gently, "If we delay any longer I fear we'll have a tougher time finding Nanao."

Rangiku glanced between Unohana and Toushiro. Her motherly instincts were screaming at her, telling her Kotaro needed her. But her logical side was saying he'll be fine with Toushiro and that Nanao really needed her more.

"Rangiku," Toushiro warned.

Rangiku shoved her instincts down and latched onto logic, "Okay lets go Captain Unohana," before she could second guess herself or change her mind, she quickly stepped through the senkaimon.

Unohana quickly followed Rangiku, leaving Toushiro alone in the courtyard. As soon as the senkaimon had closed and vanished, Toushiro turned on his heel and hurried over to the Tenth.

* * *

><p>When Rangiku arrived in the World of the living, the first thing she noticed was how much colder it felt here compared to the Soul Society. The second thing she noticed was the rain. Dark storm clouds loomed high above her, making everywhere else look grey and dull. While thick raindrops pelted the many pathways of the large park she'd landed in.<p>

Unohana appeared beside her and after giving the sky a glancing sweep she sighed, "It always seems to rain whenever I come to the World of the Living."

A huge gust of wind kicked up and Rangiku shivered, "Lets hope Nanao isn't too far away."

"I cant see her being too far away Rangiku," Unohana began walking away from the senkaimon, dodging puddles as she went.

Rangiku hurried after her, hopping over the smaller puddles and giving the larger ones a wide berth, "How do you know that Captain Unohana?"

"Based on what you and Juushiro told me yesterday," Unohana paused and waited for Rangiku to catch up, "It seems Nanao's been running on empty for at least two weeks. If she did have some small reserve of spiritual pressure that's been keeping her going, then we can be sure that its now been depleted. Whatever happened between her and Shunsui would've taken its toll on her."

"It doesn't make sense," Rangiku sighed sadly, "Why would she run away like that?"

"Shunsui told us that Nanao remembers everything," Unohana answered in a soft tone, "I can only assume that the returning memories were overwhelming to her. I expect when everything dropped into place for her, she realised what she's done and simply panicked."

"But still," Rangiku swept her gaze around the sodden park, "Why come here of all places. Why run to the World of the Living?"

"People do strange things when they're in a blind panic," Unohana came to an abrupt stop and spun on her heel, "Did you feel that Rangiku?"

Rangiku had felt it. It'd only been brief, but she had felt a very weak and faint pulse of energy, "Yes, but it doesn't feel like Nanao's energy."

"No it doesn't," Unohana agreed, "But it does feel similar to that other pressure that we felt when Nanao and Shunsui were clashing."

"Its similar but it lacks the weight and the darkness," Rangiku frowned, "This feels much lighter and," she couldn't quite be sure, "Timid?"

Unohana was so deep in thought that a small crease had formed between her eyes, "Interesting."

Rangiku was about to ask her what she meant when a foul pressure filled the air. Judging by the amount of pressure, she doubted it was just the one Hollow.

They felt another weak pulse of energy and this time Rangiku could get a fix on its direction. She spun on her heel and looking across a very large playing field, she saw a small wooded area. "It came from over their," she pointed the small grove of trees out to Unohana.

They heard an ear piercing screech and a handful of Hollows appeared halfway across the playing field. Sensing the strange pulse of energy, the Hollows immediately headed for the trees.

Rangiku's hand flew straight to Haineko's handle. She pulled her sword from its sheathe and broke into a run, half running, half shunpoing across the playing field. As Rangiku crossed the field she did a quick head count of the Hollows and determined there were nine altogether. They were fairly low levelled, but she still needed to dispatch them quickly.

"Rangiku," She glanced over her shoulder and saw Unohana keeping pace with her, "It seems we have an ally."

Rangiku turned back to the trees and sure enough she saw a flash of orange and spotted another Shinigami dancing and shunpoing around the group of Hollows.

By the time Rangiku had reached the edge of the field, the group of Hollows had already been decimated. She pushed her way through the small clump of bushes and navigated her way through the trees.

She soon burst through into a small clearing and she skidded to a stop when she saw Ichigo Kurosaki crouched next to an unconscious Nanao. The orange haired teen glanced up at her and his eyes went wide. He shot to his feet and held his hands out in surrender, "Rangiku-san."

"Ichigo!" Rangiku exclaimed. It had been quite a long time since she'd last seen him. She realised she was still brandishing Haineko so she quickly sheathed her sword. Once her sword was safely away Ichigo lowered his hands again.

Unohana appeared in the clearing and her eyes quickly darted from Rangiku, to Ichigo, then dropped down to Nanao.

"Unohana-san," Ichigo seemed quite surprised to see the pair of them.

"Its been a long time Ichigo," Unohana acknowledge before she dropped down to her knees to examine Nanao.

Rangiku joined her and swept Nanao's loose strands of hair away from her face, "She's lost her glasses," she frowned then added, "And she has a nasty bump on her head."

"What happened to her?" Ichigo asked with curiosity, "She looks pretty beat up to me."

"She's not well," Rangiku replied. Her gaze travelled over Nanao, in addition to her withered appearance she now had a bump on the head and both of her hands and wrists were badly burnt. Rangiku had no doubt it had something to do with Shunsui's chest.

"Don't worry Nanao, I'm here," Rangiku rested her palms against Nanao's cheeks. She could tell from the tear stains on her cheeks and the red puffiness of her eyes that Nanao had been crying a lot, "Captain Unohana."

"Hmm?" Unohana looked at Rangiku with a slight frown on her face. So far the motherly Captain had been absorbed in examining Nanao with her blue diagnostic kido, "Very strange."

"What is it?" Rangiku felt beyond worried, "Do you know what's wrong with her?"

"Yes, I have an idea now," Unohana stood back up and pulled her sword out to open up another senkaimon, "The sooner we get her back to the Fourth the better."

"Unohana-san, Rangiku-san," Ichigo had been standing back listening to their exchange, "Do you need any help?"

Unohana exchanged a look with Rangiku.

Ichigo then bent down and scooped Nanao up easily into his arms, "I can carry her back for you."

"Very well Ichigo," Before Unohana stepped into the senkaimon she asked, "Do you think you can run without jostling her too much?"

Ichigo hefted Nanao in his arms, "She as light as a feather. Shouldn't be a problem."

"Okay lets run," Rangiku was already stepping over to the senkaimon, "I cant imagine this rain is doing her any good either."

Rangiku entered the senkaimon first, closely followed by Ichigo with Unohana bringing up the rear. They sprinted back through the precipice without talking and several times Rangiku wondered why the return trip back through the Dangai always seemed to take longer.

Soon the exit materialized before her and she felt a sense of relief when her foot connected with dry ground rather then splashing into a puddle.

As soon as Unohana had cleared the gateway she lifted her sword and called on her shikai, Minazuki.

Unohana's sword began to morph into a green gas like substance before it began to take on a more solid appearance. Once it'd fully materialized, a giant, green, one-eyed manta ray stood before them.

Ichigo stared at it in disbelief, "Whoa, what is that thing? Its freaking huge."

Minazuki turned its eye on Ichigo and made some gurgling noise, before its tongue reached out and tried to wrapped itself around Ichigo's waist.

"Minazuki, that wont be necessary," Unohana reached up and patted her Zanpakuto affectionately, "I'm sure Ichigo doesn't want to travel inside your stomach."

Rangiku and Unohana stepped over to Ichigo and took Nanao from his arms. Between them they gently carried her and placed her on Minazuki's back. When they were both sitting comfortably on its back they glanced back at Ichigo to find that he'd vanished.

"Ichigo?" Rangiku glanced all around her, "Where did he go?"

Minazuki made another gurgling sound, which was punctuated by several screams and yells which seemed to be coming from inside its mouth. Unohana leant forward and placed her palm flat against Minazuki's head and sighed, "Very well Minazuki, but you have to release him when we reach the Fourth."

Minazuki made another gurgling sound before it kicked off from the ground and soared up into the air.


	26. Chapter 26

Hello! Thank you to everyone whose left a review for the last chapter. As always they are greatly appriciated. This chapter has turned out alot longer then I'd originally anticipated. So once again, I've had to split it up. I was hoping to make a few revelations by the end of this chapter, but they will now be in the next chapter. My apologies. I wont keep you much longer. Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 26<p>

_Where was she? She wondered. Why was she in so much pain?_

_Her whole body was aching and her head was pounding. She felt very cold and her feet felt like blocks of ice. Her clothes felt soaked through too. She tried to wiggle her fingers but they felt painful and sore. The small movement had also caused the pain to shoot up into her hands and wrists._

_She felt very strange. She knew she was lying down on something, yet it also felt like she was flying. She could feel cold air blowing around her body, which was making her shiver more. A few strands of her hair were also flapping around her face, but she couldn't produce the energy to brush them away. _

_She thought she heard movement close by and tried to say something. But she just couldn't produce the words. Instead a small groan escaped her lips._

"_Is she waking up?" Asked a very concerned voice._

"_It appears so." A second voice replied calmly. A warm hand brushed the strands of hair away from her face before coming to a rest against her cheek, "I was hoping to get back before that happened though."_

"_Will she be all right?" The first voice asked, which sounded oddly familiar._

"_She's in a bad way, but I will do everything in my power to make sure she pulls through," The second voice was filled with so much warmth and caring. It sounded so motherly, "The sooner we get back to the Fourth the better."_

_Feeling confused she tried to say something. Anything. Oddly enough the only word she managed to produce was a whispered, "Moth..er."_

_She heard a small intake of breath and then the first voice spoke up again, "Did she just say..?"_

"_Yes it sounded like it," the second voice said gently. The hand on her cheek moved away and came to rest against her forehead instead, "I'll have to put her back to sleep again." _

"_Oh I think I can see the Fourth now," the first voice suddenly perked up._

_The Fourth? Her mind suddenly felt very hazy and the pain she was feeling in her body started to melt away. It'd started in her head. The pounding had started to recede and an odd warmth was spreading throughout her body, numbing the pain as it went. She could also feel herself slipping back to sleep and she knew there was no fighting it._

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><p>Walking through the many hallways and corridors of the Fourth Division, Toushiro hurried to where he could feel Rangiku's presense. He recognized her location as being on the Lieutenants wing, which was situated a few corridors away from the Captains wing of the infirmary. Like the Captains, the Lieutenants also had a private room each.<p>

As he rounded the final corner Rangiku looked up and came bounding over to him, closing the distance between them.

"Toshi," she called as she flung her arms around his neck, "I'm so glad you're here."

"What's the situation Rangiku?" He asked stroking her hair.

"Captain Unohana's still checking Nanao over," she replied tilting her head towards the door with Squad Eights kanji and flower insignia printed on a small sign, "Its been two hours now."

"So still no news then," he surmised, "What about Shunsui, have you heard anything about him yet?"

"Isane finished treating him quite awhile ago. Captain Ukitake's watching over him while he rests," Rangiku sighed heavily, "You know what Shun-kun is like. The moment he wakes up and figures out that Nanao is here. He'll be trying to come and see her."

"Hmm, just until we can find out what's going on," Toushiro paused and frowned slightly, "I think it would be for the best if we kept them apart for now."

They were silent for a moment which Rangiku broke with a small sigh, "Toshi hows-"

"Kotaro," he finished for her, "Don't worry about him Rangiku, I've managed to calm him down. The clash of spiritual pressure between Shunsui and Nanao made him feel very distressed. Obviously with him being young his growing power is immature and harder to control. So naturally when he grew upset, it was just the thing to cause his power to emerge. I was hoping to make the transition easier for him by explaining the whole process to him and teaching him control methods before it became an issue. But unfortunately, he jumped the gun."

"He must have been so freaked out by it all," Rangiku rested her cheek against Toushiro's shoulder, "Even if you know about it, it still comes as a shock when it suddenly happens. Aww my little baby."

"Yeah he was pretty freaked out," Toushiro admitted, "I hurried back to him but it still took me twenty minutes to get there. He'd accidently created a few tornado's."

"Wow," Rangiku despite her worry was impressed.

"Hosokawa tried to do what he could to calm Kotaro down until either of us got there, but he just couldn't get close to Kotaro."

"How did you help him then?" Rangiku asked gripping his hand tightly.

"I used my own reiatsu to drive Kotaro's back to a safer level. Once I could get close to him, I was then able to instruct him on how to withdraw his own power back to him."

"Did he hurt himself at all?"

"No he's fine Rangiku. He's sleeping now, but I would like Unohana to check him over at some point," Toushiro glanced at Rangiku, "Its hard to tell what his power is exactly, but judging from the tornado's. I would have to guess its related to the wind somehow."

"I guess we'll just have to wait and see how his powers develop," Rangiku commented with a small smile, "And what about his Zanpakuto, does he know?"

"No, not yet," Toushiro shook his head, "Kotaro can hear her in the back of his mind, but he cant make out what she's saying yet."

"She?" Rangiku's eyebrows shot up in surprise, "I thought Kotaro's Zanpakuto was male? Didn't you say Hyourimaru was always calling it a 'him'?"

"That's what I thought too," Toushiro grabbed Rangiku's hand and guided her towards a set of seats and sat himself down, "But Hyourimaru only saw her as a baby dragon, then after awhile he left her alone."

"Will Captain Unohana be able to tell what his power is, now that its emerged?" Rangiku flopped down heavily onto the seat next to Toushiro.

"She'd be able to gauge his reiatsu's basic composition, like for example whether its fire based, ice based that sort of thing. She could probably tell too if a Kotaro is likely to be brute strength or maybe geared more towards kido or healing."

"Wow I cant wait to find out," Rangiku said excitedly, "And now we definitely have to start training him."

"Yeah," Toushiro smiled and pulled Rangiku closer to him. He leant his head against hers, "We'll have to make up a schedule for him."

"Whose looking after him now?" Rangiku sat up suddenly.

Toushiro pulled her back to him and replied softly, "Don't worry, Momo's watching over him."

Rangiku relaxed slightly and glanced over to Nanao's door, "I wish I knew what was happening in there. I really hope Nanao will be okay."

"Did you find her okay?" Toushiro asked as he played with a strand of her silky hair, "You'd returned a lot sooner then I'd expected. I could have sworn I felt Kurosaki too," he added with a slight scowl.

"Nanao didn't make it too far," Rangiku settled her head against Toushiro's shoulder, "She just didn't have the energy any more. We found her collapsed in a park with Hollows swarming around her. Luckily Ichigo was in the area and he took care of them before me and Captain Unohana arrived."

"Hmm that was lucky," Toushiro's scowl turned into a small smirk, "Does that mean he's going to be hanging in the Soul Society for a bit then?"

"You know Ichigo," Rangiku replied brightly.

They fell silent, each mulling over their own thoughts. Toushiro was replaying the scene of Kotaro's three impressively large, green tornado's which had been circling him in the training yard. While Rangiku's mind kept replaying the sight of Nanao and the approaching swarm of Hollows in the World of the Living.

Several minutes later Rangiku was the first to break the silence, "Toshi I'm sorry."

"What for?" Toushiro asked quirking an eyebrow at the random apology.

"For yelling and getting mad at you. I should have trusted you. I know you wouldn't just toss Shunsui and Nanao in a cell like some heartless bastard. I'm sorry."

Toushiro sat up slightly, "You have nothing to apologise for. Why are you even bringing it up? Let it drop okay."

Rangiku stared back at him for a few seconds before she resumed lounging against his shoulder, "Okay."

"If it makes you feel any better," Toushiro commented quietly, "I think the Head-Captain chose me on purpose. I think he knew that I would allow Unohana and Ukitake to get Shunsui and Nanao to the Fourth first. I don't think the Head-Captain wanted them tossed into a cell either."

Rangiku lifted her head and stared back at him with a confused expression, "Well if the Head-Captain didn't want Shunsui and Nanao arresting. Then why did he issue the order in the first place?"

"I suppose to keep face and maintain his level of authority," Toushiro surmised, "Think about it this way. The Head-Captain sees Kyouraku and Ukitake as his sons right? Well Shunsui defied him by walking out on the meeting despite being ordered to stay. In that situation the Head-Captain cant exactly show favouritism and let Shunsui get away with it. Especially not in front of the other Captains and Lieutenants. So he had to appear as though he was following procedures by issuing someone with orders to arrest him."

Toushiro saw the puzzled look on Rangiku face, "Look at it this way. What would you do if you and me were training our Division and Kotaro started having a tantrum? And he ignored us in front of our own squad members and ran off?"

"We would have to punish him," Rangiku agreed, "It would be setting a bad example if we didn't do anything."

"Exactly, because he would be undermining our authority in front of everyone. The Head-Captain is in a similar situation," Toushiro concluded.

Rangiku fell deep into thought. Pondering Toushiro's assessment of the situation. It made a lot of sense.

She was ripped from her thoughts by a loud ear piercing scream coming from Nanao's room, followed by the crash of something metallic hitting the floor. Toushiro and Rangiku simultaneously shot to their feet.

* * *

><p>Nanao's eyes flew open. Her vision was blurry and she had no idea where she was. She screamed loudly as bloody images from her nightmare still danced in her vision. She tried to bolt from the bed, but something caught on her hand and a shattering crash filled the room.<p>

"Calm down Nanao, its okay," Came a soothing voice from her left, "Its okay you're safe in the Fourth," Unohana wrapped her arms around Nanao's flailing body and held her still until she calmed down.

Nanao was panting heavily. Her limbs were shaking violently and her breath came out in loud gasps. Her whole body felt soaked with sweat and she could taste the salty tang of her tears as they trailed down her cheeks.

"Captain Unohana," she stammered as her initial panic started to recede.

"Shh, easy now," Unohana soothed still holding Nanao in her arms, "Just take some deep breaths."

There was a knock on the door and Nanao jumped at the unexpected noise.

"Take some slow deep breaths Nanao," Unohana instructed as she pulled her arms away, "I'll be right back."

Nanao clutched at the bedsheets tangled around her body as Unohana swiftly walked over to the door and opened it. She briefly heard someone enquiring if everything was all right. There were a few whispered words exchanged then Unohana closed the door again and walked back over to the bed.

Nanao continued to stare straight ahead as she tried to steady her pounding heart. She felt something wet and sticky on the back of her hand and glancing down she saw blood trickling out from where an I.V line had been placed into her hand. The blood seeped into the bandages wrapped around her hand and wrist, staining it crimson.

"Here, let me sort that for you," Unohana grasped her hand and brought up her other which was now glowing with healing kido.

Nanao followed the long I.V tube and saw that it was connected to a drip stand that had been toppled over, "I'm sorry," her words caught in her dry throat.

"Its okay Nanao. It wouldn't be the first time that's happened and it certainly wont be the last." Unohana replied watching Nanao carefully, who'd gone very rigid and was trembling all over, "How are you feeling?"

Nanao hardly heard the kind Captains question. Because bit by agonising bit, the mornings events were slowly creeping back into her mind. She gasped and clutched at her head as a particularly vivid memory flashed before her eyes. She wasn't entirely sure whether it actually happened that morning or whether it was a memory that had returned to her during the meeting. It could even be a bad mix of the two.

"_Nanao-chan!"_

"_Stay away from me!" She screamed, "I cant be around you!"_

"_Nanao, you have to calm down."_

"_No! I just need to get away from you!"_

With a lot of effort, she managed to tear herself away from the memory and focus on what was happening right in front of her instead. She blinked a few times and became aware that Unohana was hugging her, "Captain Unoha-"

"You're very distressed Nanao," Unohana stated gently, "Shunsui mentioned that you'd remembered a few things," she said delicately.

Nanao stared at Unohana, the expression on her face radiated warmth and kindness. Did Unohana already know what'd happened between her and Shunsui? Why was Unohana being so kind to her? Nanao felt a huge surge of guilt and shame wash over her. She didn't deserve Unohana's kindness. Not after she'd...

"Nanao, you know you can tell me anything," Unohana prompted kindly, "I'm not here to judge you. I'm here to help you."

Nanao's eyes were beginning to blur as the tears began to build up, threatening to spill over any moment. Unohana just stared back at her, patiently waiting. Waiting for what though?

Another memory bubbled to the surface of her mind. Or to be more precise, a string of memories. One after the other each depicting her physically hurting Shunsui in some way. She screwed her eyes up and a small sob escaped, "I hurt him," she cried out in dismay, "I hurt him really bad."

"Nanao, you haven't done anything wrong. If you were aware of yourself at the time you wouldn't have willingly done those things to Shunsui," Unohana pulled her closer and rubbed her back in soothing circles, "Its not your fault."

Nanao started to cry. She couldn't help it. She cried like she'd never cried before in her entire life. The huge dam of emotions she'd been holding back had finally cracked and everything came spilling forth.

Unohana patiently sat their rubbing her back making soothing sounds. Every now and then she would toss out a comment about 'Letting it all out,' and 'You'll feel better once you've got it off your chest.' Which in Nanao's opinion just made her cry even harder.

She hung onto Unohana's shoulder for dear life as she sobbed for what felt like hours. Once she'd ran out of tears and the sobs had stopped racking her body, she pulled away from Unohana and rubbed her fingers over her throbbing temples.

She felt weak and exhausted. Her whole body ached and felt like a lead weight. Her stomach had started to churn uncomfortably and her head was beginning to swim.

"Nanao?" Unohana questioned as she placed a palm over her feverish forehead.

"I think I'm going to be-" Nanao threw up her hand to cover her mouth.

Quick as lightening Unohana whipped a bowl off the night stand and placed it on Nanao's lap just as she began to retch. She pulled Nanao's hair back and rubbed her back.

When her stomach had finished emptying its contents, Nanao accepted the glass of water that Unohana had handed to her with shaking hands, "Sip it slowly Nanao."

"Captain Unohana," Nanao's teeth were chattering together, "What's wrong with me?" She asked weakly.

Unohana moved over to a small cupboard and pulled out a large blanket. She then walked back over to Nanao's bed and draped it around her shaking shoulders. Unohana then went about fluffing up the pillows and then she adjusted Nanao so she was leaning back into them, but still sitting up. She then straightened out the bed covers and pulled them up to Nanao's waist, "Does that feel a bit better?"

"Thank you," Nanao answered quietly as she snuggled into the blanket that'd been wrapped around her shoulders.

Unohana perched herself on the edge of Nanao's bed and reached for one of her hands, "I performed a few tests Nanao while you were still asleep. I'm still waiting for the results of one in particular, but I do have a general idea of why you've been feeling so ill lately."

Nanao's hand flew to her face to adjust her glasses forgetting that she wasn't wearing any, "Wha... What did you find out?"

"Where do I begin?" Unohana sighed softly, "You haven't been eating regular meals and you're showing all the signs of being malnourished. You're dehydrated. Stressed and exhausted. Your spiritual pressure is practically non-existent now. Your hormones are all out of balance. You have the classic symptoms of anxiety and I bet you've been experiencing some pretty bad mood swings too."

Nanao made to protest but Unohana cut her off.

"Then there's the frequent sickness which I've heard all about from Shunsui and Rangiku. The headaches, dizzy spells and light-headedness. The fainting. Memory blanks. Your unstable spiritual pressure."

Nanao shivered and wrapped her blanket tighter around her, which Unohana noticed.

"Then there's the hot sweats and cold flashes. Regular fevers."

Nanao tore her eyes away from Unohana's and slid her eyes closed. Even though Unohana was speaking to her with a gentle tone, she still felt like she was being told off somehow.

"I've been very concerned about you Nanao," she felt a hand on her shoulder and she opened her eyes again, "I just wished you had come to me sooner."

"Captain Unohana," Nanao began hesitantly. Unohana gave her an encouraging nod and she continued, "My reiatsu," Nanao opened her hand and stared at her palm, "Why... I mean." Nanao sighed in exasperation, "Why is it so unsettled? And what is this dark presense I keep feeling? Why does it keep reacting every time Shunsui gets too close to me?"

"So you do truly recall everything then?" Unohana doubled checked.

Nanao slid her eyes closed and nodded, a pained expression plastered itself on her face, "I do."

"Well to fully answer your questions Nanao, I need to look over the results of your tests first," Unohana glanced at the clock ticking away on the wall, "In fact they should be ready now."

"I shouldn't be too long, but while I'm gone I want you to get some rest," Unohana stood up and and quickly checked her pulse, "I'll send Rangiku in to keep you company."

"Rangiku's here?"

"It was me and Rangiku who brought you back from the World of the Living Nanao," Unohana updated Nanao's file and placed it back on the night stand, "She's been waiting outside this whole time."

Unohana disappeared out the door and a few seconds later she returned with Rangiku, "I want you to make sure she gets some rest while I pick up these tests results Rangiku."

"No problem Captain Unohana," Rangiku bounced over to Nanao's bedside and made herself comfy in the chair, "I'll keep an eye on her."

Once Unohana had left the room Rangiku stood up again and wrapped her arms around Nanao hugging her gently, "Nanao I was so worried about you. We all were."

Just like with Unohana, Nanao was finding it difficult to look Rangiku in the eye. She just couldn't understand how either of them could be so nice to her. Especially knowing what she did to Shunsui. Her stomach churned with guilt, either that or she was going to be sick again.

"Nanao, are you okay?" Rangiku asked tilting her head to one side as she surveyed Nanao's face.

"I'm fine," she lied. She slid her eyes closed and pinched the bridge of her nose, "I'm just.." she trailed off.

"Tired," Rangiku finished for her, "You should have a nap or something before Captain Unohana returns."

That wasn't a bad idea Nanao thought, even though she knew she wouldn't be able to sleep. If she fell asleep then the nightmares would most likely return. If she stayed awake the memories of hurting Shunsui would still be haunting her. It was a no win situation. She had no idea how she would cope when she eventually had to face him again. She just hoped it wasn't any time soon.

_Shunsui's pain filled face stared back at her. His hand latched tightly on her wrist, "Nanao-chan."_

"_Let me go!" She demanded._

_He shook his head, "You know I cant do that."_

She gasped in horror and clutched at the bed sheets as the memory washed over her. Watching helplessly as she kicked out at Shunsui. His cry of _"Nanao-chan, stop it!" _echoing around her head.

"Nanao, you're looking kind of pale," Rangiku frowned at her, "You really should try and get some sleep."

"Yeah maybe," Nanao agreed quietly. With some trepidation, she leant back into the soft pillows. Maybe taking her chances with the nightmares would be marginally better then having to keep reliving the awful abuse she'd put Shunsui through.

"Don't worry Nanao, I'll be watching over you," Rangiku fussed about making sure Nanao was nicely tucked in and comfortable, "Just try to relax a little."

A damn near impossibility in her mind, Nanao thought. She was just beginning to feel settled when a loud commotion from outside in the corridor had her jumping out of her skin, "What's going on?"

"Its okay Nanao," Rangiku replied automatically.

It didn't sound okay to her. Raised voices could be heard, drawing ever closer to her room. They were arguing, that much was obvious. She couldn't make out the words they were saying. But with a sinking feeling in her stomach, she recognised who the voices belonged too.

Her suspicions were confirmed when a third voice spoke up directly outside her door, "Kyouraku what the hell are you doing here, you should be resting," Toushiro commented in a harsh tone.

"Thank you Toushiro," Ukitake's voice was right outside now, "Its not just me that thinks you're being idiotic Shunsui."

"Will you let go of me dammit! I need to see her," Shunsui growled out angrily.

Nanao flinched at his tone which Rangiku saw, "You're not ready to face him yet are you?" She questioned quietly.

"Would you be?" Nanao replied quietly. She sat forward and cradled her head in her hands, "This is too much right now."

"I'll just let him know that you are sleeping," Rangiku jumped to her feet and made her way over to the door. However before she'd even made it halfway across the room, the door flew open. Shunsui was gripping the door frame tightly trying to pull his way inside, while both Ukitake and Toushiro were trying to restrain him and hold him back.

Nanao glanced at him out the corner of her eye. His hair was hanging in loose curls which fell over his bare shoulders. The whole of his massive, muscled chest was bandaged up from under his armpits and all the way down to his waist, where his stomach muscles were clearly defined through the bandaging. The only other thing he had on was his black hakama which were hanging low on his hips. Any other time it would have been an impressive sight. Right now it scared the hell out of her. She could tell from a quick glance that he was very angry. Whether it was because Ukitake and Toushiro were preventing him from coming in to see her. Or because he was truly angry about what she'd done to him. She really couldn't tell.

"Shunsui quit struggling," Ukitake raised his voice in irritation, "If Retsu finds you out of bed, she will skin both of us alive."

"Just let me see her dammit," Shunsui growled, "I need to see her with my own eyes. I need to know that she's okay."

There was no denying the concern in his voice and it made Nanao cringe. His concern made her feel ten times worst then what Unohana's and Rangiku's had. A huge wave of guilt washed over her causing her breath to hitched in her throat. The familiar burning in her eyes returned and her vision started to blur once again. She covered her eyes with her palms and doubled over as another memory flashed through her mind.

_She could feel the darkness coiling inside her. She could feel it latching onto Shunsui's spiritual pressure and leeching it away. Sucking him dry. Just like her own pressure had been sucked away. She could see Shunsui flagging and could tell he was losing the battle. She felt completely helpless. She didn't have the breath any more to scream at him to let her go. Even if she did, she doubted he would listen anyway. The only way he would let go ,was if she forced him to let go. She felt a small flicker of her own pressure. It wasn't much, but it would have to do. She placed her hands directly over his chest and started to draw what little of her power she had left. Her hands started to glow. She stared into his eyes and saw both pain and confusion. The light intensified to an almost blinding level. She saw him slam his eyes shut and she uttered the words, "Soren-Sokatsui!"_

"Nanao-chan!" Shunsui's voice sounded as though he was calling to her at the bottom of a very long well.

"Nanao!" Rangiku's too.

"Look you're distressing her!" Ukitake's distant voice admonished.

Nanao could see her hands glowing purple and she could taste the fresh tears pouring down her cheeks. She could hear static crackling all around her. She was finding it hard to breathe. It felt like the walls were growing smaller around her and like the world was caving in on her. She could feel herself losing control.

"I want all of you out of this room now!" Unohana said in an uncharacteristically stern voice.

The last thing Nanao was aware of was a pair of arms wrapping themselves around her, anchoring her so she wouldn't drown in the deep dark depths of despair.


	27. Chapter 27

Hello! A/N at the bottom of the page. Lots of Shunsui and Unohana in this chapter, punctuated with Toushiro, Rangiku and Ukitake. Happy Reading!

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 27<p>

Nanao's screams had followed them out into the corridor and had lasted a good twenty minutes before they'd completely subsided. That'd been an hour ago. Shunsui paced up and down the corridor like a restless tiger, unable to settle or keep still.

"Shunsui why don't you sit down for a bit?" Ukitake suggested as he saw his agitated friend walk past him again.

"I'm fine," he answered sharply.

"Aren't you in pain with your chest?" Ukitake asked raising an eyebrow.

Shunsui chose to ignore him and carried on with his pacing. He knew it wasn't getting him anywhere, but at least it gave him something to do. If given the choice he would've been happily chugging down his sake right about now. However the flask he usually kept in the waistband of his hakama had mysteriously vanished during his short time in the Fourth. He turned sharply on his heel and winced as the motion caused a sharp pain to spread throughout his chest.

Ukitake let out an exasperated sigh, "You are in pain."

"I said I'm fine Juu," he snapped back feeling irritated. The last thing he wanted right now was for his friend to be lecturing him about unimportant stuff.

Rangiku jumped up from her seat and bounded over to Shunsui. She flung her arms around his neck and gave him a hug, "We're all worried about her too Shun-kun."

"Its all right for you lot," he spoke softly but he knew his voice would carry over to Ukitake and Toushiro too, "You're not the ones who set her off. You can be around her with no problems. But when I get close..." He broke off and took a deep shaky breath before continuing on, "I just want to be able to hold her and comfort her... But I cant."

The sound of the door opening had him pulling away from Rangiku and spinning on his heel. Unohana stepped out of the room and for once she wasn't smiling.

Shunsui stepped over to her and was about to place his hands on her shoulders and start firing questions at her. But she batted one of his hands away and latched onto his other. Without any warning she began carting him away from Ukitake, Toushiro and Rangiku.

"Retsu?" He questioned, as she marched him down the corridor. At first he thought she was escorting him back to his room but after a few more steps she stopped and released his wrist. "What's going on? Is Nanao okay?"

"I've managed to settle her down again," Unohana replied looking very unamused, "No thanks to your little stunt."

Shunsui winced slightly and quickly added, "I just needed to see that she was okay."

"Of course you did, and you couldn't have just waited like a normal person would. You had to come barging in thinking you know what's best. How could you be so irresponsible Shunsui?"

He was about to cut in when Unohana promptly cut him off.

"You know her unsettled reiatsu reacts to you. And you know it takes a lot out of her when it happens. So why didn't you stop and think, that maybe you could be doing more harm then good. For the sake of satisfying your own selfishness, you've just put Nanao through another hour of needless distress."

"Do you think I don't know that!" He exploded back, losing his temper, "Do you think it was easy for me to stand out here having to listen to her screaming like that! Do you think I don't feel guilty enough already, that its me that keeps causing that?"

"I am furious with you Shunsui. This whole mess could have been easily avoided if you'd told me sooner what was going on. You shouldn't have delayed bringing Nanao to me. You should have told me that morning when Juushiro found you in the bathroom. But instead you allowed your idiotic male pride to get in the way."

"How dare you!" He yelled back, "I wanted nothing more then for Nanao to have a check up. I kept pestering her to go see you. She kept insisting that she felt fine."

Unohana's glare promptly silenced Shunsui. In a dangerously quiet voice that forced him to listen carefully she said, "When her reiatsu started to show signs of destabilizing, you should have brought her straight to me. Instead you panicked and automatically assumed she would be locked away. People only get locked away in the most severe of cases. There's not much that I cant put right. I certainly wouldn't have even entertained locking Nanao away. Frankly I'm insulted that you would even think that. I understand that you don't want to lose Nanao. But your actions could have potentially ended up killing her and other lives as well."

"I'm sorry Retsu," Shunsui lowered his head in shame.

"I'm not finished yet."

* * *

><p>Rangiku had perched herself on Toushiro's knee and had wrapped her arms around his neck. In the seat next to him sat Ukitake who had slid his eyes shut, a small smile gracing his lips.<p>

She'd felt alarmed when Unohana had suddenly emerged from Nanao's room and had carted Shunsui off down the corridor like a little kid. She soon caught on that Unohana simply wanted to have a quiet word with Shunsui. However she wasn't expecting them to be having a full blown argument.

They'd tried politely not to listen in, but it was unfortunate that they were having such a loud argument. The corridor just happened to be very quiet and empty which made their voices bounce right off the walls. Neither of them were even trying to keep their voices down. So it came as no surprise that she, Toushiro and Ukitake were failing miserably at trying not to listen.

"Wow. I've never seen Captain Unohana that angry before," Rangiku commented as she heard Unohana admonish Shunsui for the fifth time about being irresponsible. It was a good job the Captains and Lieutenants wing of the infirmary was a restricted section of the infirmary and only a handful of well trusted nurses and division members were authorized to be there. "She's really letting Shunsui have it."

"Rangiku," A small smirk made its way onto Toushiro's face, "I don't think anyone has ever seen Unohana that angry before."

Ukitake sighed distractedly, "I know, isn't she magnificent."

Rangiku exchanged a quick look with Toushiro, "Captain Ukitake."

"Hmm?" He responded without taking his eyes off his best friend and his beloved.

"What ever happened to you being the peacemaker?" Rangiku asked glancing at the two senior Captains, "Aren't you going to step in?"

"Absolutely not Rangiku," Ukitake's face lit up with a huge smile, "In this instance, I prefer to remain neutral."

"But..?" Rangiku tilted her head to one side.

"What he means Rangiku," Toushiro injected, "Is if he stepped in now, he would be stepping into a no win situation. If he goes to the aid of Unohana, he will be on the receiving end of Shunsui's ire. If he went to Shunsui's aid.."

"Ahh say no more," Rangiku glanced at Ukitake and the kind Captain winked back at her.

"I'm afraid Shunsui's on his own this time," He smiled back innocently.

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><p>Shunsui and Unohana's argument had reached an impasse. After glowering at each other for a few seconds Shunsui took a few steps away from Unohana and turned his back on her. He folded his arms across his chest and let out a deep weary sigh.<p>

"Shunsui," Unohana called after him.

"What?" He replied harshly as he spun back to face her, "Want to yell at me some more?"

"No," Unohana replied in a much calmer tone.

"Because how I see it," Shunsui swept his arms out, "No matter what I say or do. In the end I'm still in the wrong. I've done nothing but love and protect Nanao-chan. I've cared for her throughout this whole mess, despite the way she's treated me. Yet you and Juu still keep treating me like I'm a criminal. I've not layed a single finger on her. She's beat me up, kicked me around and constantly tried to push me away."

"Shunsui, calm yourself please," Unohana warned quietly.

"If the roles were reversed-"

"That's enough Shunsui," Unohana cut in firmly, "Going around in circles like this and arguing is getting us nowhere," she reached her hand out and held onto his wrist, gently rubbing her thumb in a circular motion, "The only issue I have with this whole situation, is that you didn't bring Nanao to me sooner and that you tried to hide the situation from me."

"Retsu-"

"I know its not been easy for you Shunsui," Unohana interrupted in a much gentler tone, "But I just needed you to understand that by first avoiding the situation, you've actually made it tens times worst then what it needed to be."

"I was just trying to protect Nanao-chan," he sighed heavily, "I love her Retsu. I don't want to see her come to any more harm, or get locked up. I don't want to lose her."

"I know you don't Shunsui," Unohana released Shunsui's wrist, "What you have with Nanao is special. If you hadn't stuck by her during this difficult time and had walked away. I can guarantee I would be mopping the floors with your face right now."

"Really?" Shunsui asked with a shadow of a smile on his face, "You'd actually do that?"

"Shunsui, If you leave Nanao in her current condition," Unohana repeated in an eerily calm tone, "I WILL mop the floors with your face."

"So, um," Shunsui hesitated and his hand flew up to scratch the back of his neck, "Do you know what's up with Nanao-chan then?"

Unohana gave him a long serious look before nodding, "I do Shunsui. I was on my way back from collecting her test results and I'd decided to stop by your room to let you know what they'd showed up. I thought it best if I discussed them with you first, considering Nanao's current emotional state. I don't want to risk upsetting her further, but I honestly don't know how she'd react. That's why I'm hoping you could give me some indications on the matter."

"Retsu," Shunsui took a step forward and rested his hands on her shoulders and leant down so their faces were on a level, "What did you find out? Please just tell me."

Unohana was quiet for a few seconds before replying, "Nanao's pregnant."

Shunsui's grip tightened on Unohana's shoulders and his eyes went wide.

"Due to Nanao's current state of health, its putting the baby at serious risk," Unohana lifted her hands and rested them on top of Shunsui's, easing his grip off her shoulders slightly. Seeing his oddly vacant expression and the fact that he appeared frozen she gave his fingers a little squeeze, "Shunsui?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you okay with it?" Unohana asked seeing a myriad of emotions flicking across his face. Shock was the pre-dominant emotion, which was followed by surprise, then a bit of anxiety, a small flicker of joy and then finally anger. Shunsui suddenly pulled away from Unohana and turned his back on her. His shoulders were shaking and he'd balled his hands into fists, "Shunsui."

Shunsui turned back around and engulfed Unohana in a hug, leaning heavily into her. The gentle Captain could feel him shaking in her arms, "Are you angry about this Shunsui?"

"How could I be angry about my lovely Nanao-chan being pregnant," he replied quietly.

"But you are angry about something," Unohana pointed out.

"Yes," he admitted quietly.

"Tell me what it is Shunsui," Unohana prompted gently.

"I'm angry with myself," Shunsui's voice cracked slightly and he hid his face in Unohana's shoulder, "You said my actions could have killed Nanao-chan and other lives. Is this what you meant by that? The baby? Because I didn't bring Nanao to you sooner?"

"It could have been a contribution Shunsui, however and understand this," Unohana paused to make sure he was listening, "There are other factors contributing to the problem. So please, stop blaming yourself."

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><p>"What do you suppose they are talking about over there?" Rangiku wondered aloud.<p>

"Something private Rangiku," Toushiro sighed at Rangiku's blatant nosiness, while at the same time he kept glancing at the two Captains every now and then trying to appear uninterested.

"I think I preferred it when they were yelling and shouting at each other," Rangiku admitted, "At least we could hear what was going on," She glanced to her other side at Ukitake, "What do you think is happening Captain Ukitake?"

Ukitake had remained pretty quiet throughout Shunsui and Unohana's exchange. Despite saying he wouldn't get involved, he'd been sitting back and watching, just in case things got out of hand between them. At one point when Shunsui had turned away from Unohana and had been clenching his fists, he'd been seriously tempted to step in. Yes he and Shunsui were best friends. But he wouldn't allow anyone to lay a finger on Retsu. Not even his best friend.

He needn't have worried though. It seemed like the tense situation between the two had finally dissolved. His eyebrows rose slightly when Shunsui launched himself at Retsu and buried his face in her shoulder.

"Something significant," He replied, answering Rangiku's question.

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><p>"Retsu," Shunsui pulled away from Unohana and straightened up again, "Did it shed some light on the situation, finding out that Nanao is pregnant?"<p>

Unohana nodded, "It explains why she's been having bouts of sickness, and why she's been fainting and having dizzy spells. Then there's the mood swings and her feelings of irritability, its because her hormones are all out of balance. It doesn't help either that she's stressed and exhausted from a lack of sleep. She's not been eating properly either and is malnourished. All in all, its no wonder why she's so full of anxiety at the moment. I expect she's been having one or two nightmares too, correct?"

Shunsui sighed, "She's had a few. I think that's why she started to resist going to sleep so much," he looked away from Unohana feeling guilty, "I've had to force her to sleep so many times."

"Her spiritual pressure is dangerously low too," Unohana continued on, "Since Nanao hasn't been eating, her regular reiatsu supplies haven't been sufficiently replenished to support herself. Let alone a developing baby who needs a healthy supply of both food and spiritual pressure from its mother."

"Wait a minute," Shunsui's voice rose in alarm, "Nanao hasn't been eating properly. Does that mean her baby... Our baby. Is starving to death?"

"I'm afraid so Shunsui," Unohana stared back at him sadly, "When I checked you over outside the First. I noticed that your spiritual pressure was so low, it was barely registering. Yet right before the meeting it felt like your levels were about normal. I believe your baby must have somehow leached a significant amount of spiritual pressure from you."

"How is that even possible?"

"Shunsui, the dark reiatsu that's been reacting to you."

"What about it?" He asked with a frown.

"Didn't you recognize it? Its your reiatsu signature," Unohana saw Shunsui's unconvinced look and carried on, "Its hard to tell with it being so unstable and out of balance. But the basic composition matches that of yours and Nanao's spiritual pressure."

Shunsui cocked his head to one side, "Mine and Nanao-chan's?"

Unohana waited patiently and allowed Shunsui to reach his own conclusion.

"Wait, that dark reiatsu actually belongs to the baby?" Shunsui's eyes went wide, "But its so... Aggressive."

"Yes it belongs to the baby and I have to agree," Unohana's eyes slid shut, "It is very aggressive."

"Its not normal," Shunsui quietly stated the obvious, "Ran-chan didn't have this problem with little Kota-kun."

"No its not normal Shunsui," Unohana opened her eyes and reached for Shunsui's hand again, "I think where Shinigami pregnancies are concerned. We cant assume that they will all follow the same pattern. Especially where two different spiritual pressures join together and try to become one. Sometimes they do clash at first." Unohana broke her gaze away from Shunsui's, "Although saying that, you and Nanao have been pretty harmonious with each other. Its just been this last two to three weeks that's been problematic for you."

"Retsu, how far along is Nanao-chan?"

"Between one to two months," Unohana replied with a small smile, "So you see. Whatever caused the imbalance in both Nanao's and the baby's reiatsu, happened somewhere in the last three weeks."

"What do you suppose...?" Shunsui's eyes narrowed.

"I think you already know the answer to that question."

"Would a kido dampener be enough to create an imbalance Retsu?"

"Nanao obviously doesn't know she is pregnant. We both know she has an habit of forgetting to eat during the day when she gets busy with running the division. And I bet she's been having a few too many late nights and early mornings. All this combined and her system would've already been in a delicate condition."

"So that kido dampener pretty much tipped the already precarious balance?" Shunsui concluded with a grim look on his face.

"That's right Shunsui."

"Well that makes sense, but it still doesn't explain why the baby's reiatsu keeps reacting to me," Shunsui paused before adding, "And why Nanao's been attacking me."

"Yes that is a very unusual occurrence," Unohana answered with a slight frown.

"You don't say," Shunsui replied with a hint of sarcasm. Unohana silenced him with a glare.

"So do you have any theories Retsu?" He asked in a much nicer tone.

"I do have an idea," Unohana seemed to be considering the idea.

"And that would be?" Shunsui prompted impatiently.

"Nanao is subconsciously protecting her baby, and the baby is just simply craving attention," Unohana tossed out serenely.

"What!" Shunsui exclaimed loudly, "That makes no sense Retsu."

"Actually it makes perfect sense Shunsui."

"No it doesn't," Shunsui argued back.

"I wasn't finished explaining Shunsui," Unohana took in a deep breath, "Now lets start with your baby. That kido dampener has unbalanced its basic reiatsu signature. Which has caused it to become unsettled and aggressive. Its receiving no nutrition from Nanao. Which has caused it to go into some sort of survival mode."

"Survival mode?"

"Yes," Unohana nodded, "The baby is receiving no nutrition from Nanao and so its been forced to find nutrition from another source. It recognises Nanao's pressure as the primary source and feeds off it, but when that source disappears it has to find a secondary source."

"Which would happen to be my spiritual pressure right?" Shunsui's eyes went wide.

"Yes, but your spiritual pressure is an outside source and its not as easily accessible as Nanao's is. The only way the baby can connect with your pressure, is if you release enough of it in close proximity to Nanao."

"So," Shunsui began, but Unohana carried on with her explanation.

"Whenever you've been close to Nanao, the baby's reiatsu picks up on your pressure. I would assume that's why the static charge keeps crackling between you and Nanao. It then grows agitated, because its like dangling a piece of meat just out of reach of a starving tiger. Then its pressure starts to rise. Out of sheer desperation it becomes aggressive and starts to grow. Trying to gain your attention, trying to get you to release your spiritual pressure. Just so it can feed. So it wont starve to death."

Shunsui stared at Unohana in shock. So there was no dark presense inside Nanao. It was simply his unborn child screaming out at him for help, "But how can an unborn baby have that much reiatsu? How can it be so powerful and aggressive? How can its reiatsu be so dark and dense Retsu?"

"Because its parents are two very strong Shinigami. Your spiritual pressure is very vast and dense Shunsui. You have a twin Zanpakuto which happens to be very temperamental. If your reiatsu ever went out of balance and became unstable, I'd dread to think what would happen. Then there's Nanao and the fact that she's a kido master. I know she's very private about her Zanpakuto's ability and we don't know much about it. I should imagine you are the only person she's confided in about it," Unohana saw Shunsui's nod and carried on, "The point is, if either of your pressures went out of control, it would be bad news. Now if the two were mixed together and then went out of control."

"All hell would break loose," Shunsui supplied a little dryly.

"Exactly," Unohana confirmed, "That's exactly what's happening here with your unborn child. Just on a considerably smaller scale."

Shunsui sighed heavily and ran his hands through his loose curls, "Yare Yare Nanao-chan, what are we to do," he whispered quietly. He glanced back over to Unohana and frowned, "I understand now."

"Good," Unohana smiled gently at him.

"But you still haven't explained why Nanao-chan keeps attacking me."

"That's an easy one Shunsui," Unohana answered calmly with a motherly expression on her face, "Its her maternal instincts kicking in."

"Come again?" Shunsui cocked his head to one side, not sure if he'd heard right.

Unohana smiled back at him in amusement, "Even though Nanao isn't yet aware that she's pregnant, her maternal instincts are. With her system being so out of balance her instincts have been heightened. When the baby grows agitated, she goes into protect mode. When the baby reacts to your pressure, she perceives it at a threat. When you've tried to restrain her, her instincts scream at her to fight back."

"I get it now," Shunsui replied with a small smile on his face, feeling a little relieved.

"I also think that somewhere deep inside of Nanao's mind, she's aware that something inside of her is trying to leech off your pressure. But because she doesn't know that she's pregnant, she doesn't realise what's truly happening. But she still feels the need to protect you, so that could be another factor as to why she's been attacking you and telling you to stay away from her."

"Thank you Retsu, it all makes sense now," Shunsui sighed and allowed his head to droop down, "The sooner we tell Nanao-chan."

"The better," Unohana lifted her hand and rested it against Shunsui's cheek, "It's going to take a lot of work to get her feeling right again. But more importantly, she's going to need plenty of patience and reassurances from you. She's been feeling very distraught knowing that she's been hurting you. Shunsui, she's practically had a nervous breakdown."

"My love for Nanao-chan is unconditional Retsu," Shunsui lifted his hand and rested it over the top of Unohana's, "Nothing will ever change that."

"I'm pleased to hear you say that Shunsui," Unohana dropped her hand away from his face and glanced over to where Ukitake, Toushiro and Rangiku were still sitting. She'd completely forgotten that they were there, having been so absorbed with arguing and discussing the situation with Shunsui.

"Juu looks about ready to break my neck," Shunsui commented after glancing at his best friend. He glanced back to Unohana and asked, "Retsu can I please see Nanao-chan now?"

"Yes you can," Unohana fished inside her pocket and pulled out a small, thin, plain white bracelet, "But I need you to wear this."

"What is it?" Shunsui took the bracelet and ran his eyes over it.

"Its a reiatsu sealer. Its just a precaution because I don't want to risk Nanao having another episode."

"Got it," Shunsui wasted no time in clipping the bracelet to his wrist.

"I'm curious Shunsui," Unohana began to lead him back down the corridor towards Nanao's room with a gentle hand on his back, "What are yours and Nanao's feelings on having a child? Have you ever discussed it with each other?"

"I've always wanted to have a little one running around," Shunsui admitted with a smile, "I know Nanao-chan's very fond of little Kotaro, but as for having her own child, I don't really know. Its not something we've really discussed."

"So would you be over the moon if she felt the same way as you?" Unohana stopped and turned to face him.

"Absolutely, it would be great to have a little Shunsui or a little Nanao-chan running around the house," Shunsui's smile widened into a grin.

"I see," A pained expression found its way onto Unohana's face, "But how would you feel if Nanao doesn't share the same sentiment as you? What if she doesn't want the child?"

The happy grin Shunsui had on his face slipped right off again, to be replaced with deep sorrow, "Retsu.."

"Its hard to imagine Shunsui, but you must be prepared for either possibility. Also you need to take into account how emotionally distressed she is at the moment. It may be too much for her to handle on top of what she's already been through today."

"If Nanao-chan doesn't want our child, then I will still raise it and love it no matter what," Shunsui's face was full of fierce determination, "I wont allow any child of mine to be ter... " he broke off unable to finish his sentence.

"Terminated?" Unohana finished for him.

"I just couldn't allow that to happen Retsu," Shunsui replied mournfully, "Its not fair to the child."

"I feel the same way Shunsui," Unohana smiled sadly at him then continued walking down the corridor, "However lets break the news to Nanao first and see how she feels about the situation."

Shunsui took a deep breath and nodded, "Okay," he then followed Unohana into Nanao's room.

* * *

><p>Finally! I've been keeping that secret locked away since starting this story. Its a relief to finally have it out =) I hope things make a bit more sense to you now. If there's anything you're still confused about, feel free to ask. As for the Kotaro situation, that will be made clear in upcoming chapters.<p>

Thank you to everybody who left a review for the last chapter. I always enjoy reading all your comments and feedback. I would like to reply to them all but sometimes I dont have the time. I would also like to say a special thanks to Akai-Miko and Spy-Yoru for joining my facebook group. Its wonderful chatting to you and I really enjoy our many bleach related conversations. If anyone else would like to join, you are very much welcome. All you need to do is let me know. That is all for now, see you next chapter =)


	28. Chapter 28

Hello, apologies for a late update. This chapter took a bit of careful planning and I also got hit with a huge block. Thank you to everybody who read and reviewed the last chapter. I would like to thank Akai-Miko for making me a wonderful picture of a towel clad Shunsui ^_^ and would also like to thank Spy-Yoru for helping me overcome my writers block :D You two rock! That is all for now, Happy Reading.

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 28<p>

Hearing the familiar chime of an approaching hell butterfly, Toushiro glanced over his shoulder and was surprised to see two butterflies making a beeline for him. He lifted his hands and the two butterflies fluttered down and perched themselves delicately in his palms.

Looking between the two, he noticed that the one in his left palm had come from the First Division, while the one in his right had come from the Tenth. They both simultaneously began to relay their messages, but with Rangiku and Ukitake chatting away he missed what the messages had said.

Pulling himself to his feet he walked a short distance away from them and starting with the Tenths butterfly, he replayed the messages.

"Toshi is something wrong?" Rangiku asked when she glanced over to him and saw the tell-tale scowl quickly forming on his face.

Toushiro pulled in a sharp breath as the message from the First Division played back to him. He released the butterflies and rejoined Rangiku and Ukitake, "We have a slight problem Ukitake."

"What is it Toushiro?" Ukitake's smile faded and he rose from his seat.

"I just had a message from the First," Toushiro then turned his focus to Rangiku, "And from Momo."

"Is Kotaro all right?" Rangiku asked, remembering that Toushiro had left Momo in charge of Kotaro.

"He's being moody and uncooperative," Toushiro sighed, he knew exactly why Kotaro was being like that. His son simply just wanted to be with Rangiku, he needed his mother. He estimated that he'd been at the Fourth for a couple of hours, Rangiku hadn't been home since they'd left for the meeting earlier that morning. No wonder Kotaro was growing a bit crabby, "Rangiku."

"I'm going home Toshi," Rangiku got up from her seat and wrapped her arms around him, "Its really selfish of me to have stayed here as long as I have. Especially knowing Kotaro is upset."

"Caring for a friend and waiting to hear whether they're okay is not selfish Rangiku," Toushiro kissed her cheek then stepped away from her, "But I think it would be for the best if you returned home. I need to visit the First and give a full report. I don't know how long I'll be."

"Will you let me know when you hear anything?"

"Of course I will," Toushiro gave her a small smile.

"Captain Ukitake," Rangiku switched her gaze to the older Captain, "Will you come and visit Kotaro sometime? He misses you so much."

Ukitake smiled and gave her a small nod, "I miss him too Rangiku. I'm sorry I've been keeping my distance, but I was genuinely worried that I'd caused his illness. I didn't want to risk it happening again."

"Its okay we understand," Rangiku rushed forward and pulled Ukitake into a hug, "We don't blame you at all," She pulled away from Ukitake and then engulfed Toushiro in another hug and planted a kiss on his cheek, "I'll see you later Toshi."

Toushiro watched as Rangiku walked away down the corridor. Once she'd turned a corner and disappeared Ukitake cleared his throat, "What was the message from the First Toushiro?"

"The Head-Captain is demanding a full report on the situation," Toushiro folded his arms across his chest, "He also wants to see you and Unohana."

"That's not all is it?" Ukitake questioned seeing the troubled look on Toushiro's face.

"He wants both Kyouraku and Ise brought before him. I've briefly explained that Ise is in no fit condition to be removed from the Fourth, and that Kyouraku is injured. However.."

"What did the Head-Captain say?" Ukitake prompted, knowing full well that Yamamoto wouldn't take Shunsui's disobedience lightly.

"He said and I quote, 'Unless Shunsui is actually on the verge of death, then I want his incompetent ass dragged over here right now, along with his Lieutenant.' He's even sent Komamura over to help me escort Shunsui to the First. Just in case Shunsui decides to be difficult about it."

"I had a suspicion this would happen," Ukitake admitted as his eyes narrowed, "Hence why me and Retsu wanted to get Nanao to the Fourth as quickly as possible."

Toushiro glanced at Nanao's door, "How much time do you suppose we have?"

Ukitake caught movement out the corner of his eye and he broke his gaze away from Toushiro. Glancing down the very long corridor he saw a flash of white haori and saw the enormous form of Komamura rounding the far corner, "We don't have time."

"Damn it! We cant even give them a heads up," Toushiro growled.

"Don't worry Toushiro. Although Komamura seems cold, ruthless and calculating during battles, he's actually quite a gentle and reasonable person. I'm sure he'll understand."

"You hope," Toushiro added dryly.

* * *

><p>Before Unohana closed the door behind her, she glanced through the narrow opening at the Eighth Division leaders and smiled a small smile. Shunsui was lounging on the bed comforting a snoozing Nanao, who was pressed up against his front with her face buried in his chest. When Unohana had first entered Nanao's room with Shunsui, Nanao had practically had a panic attack when she'd spotted Shunsui behind her. It seemed that now Nanao had recalled what she'd been doing to Shunsui, she'd developed a fear of being around him just in case she happened to lash out again.<p>

It'd taken Unohana quite a long time to convince Nanao that it wouldn't happen again and that it was perfectly safe for Shunsui to be close by her, as long as he wore the reiatsu sealing band on his wrist.

Once Nanao had grasped the concept she soon calmed down, but then the guilt she felt overwhelmed her. It had taken a lot of reassurances from Shunsui to make Nanao see that it wasn't her fault and that he didn't blame her in the slightest.

In order for Unohana to fully explain to Nanao what had been happening to her and why. She'd had no choice but to inform the young Lieutenant that she was pregnant.

Just as Unohana had expected, Nanao hadn't taken the news well. It had been somewhat of a stressful moment.

"_Pregnant!" Nanao screamed out as her hands fisted into the bed covers._

"_Its okay Nanao-chan," Shunsui reached for one of her hands to comfort her, but Nanao snatched her hand away before he could reach it._

"_Don't," she snapped back at Shunsui._

_Shunsui sighed wearily and pulled away from her, "You're not happy about this are you?"_

"_No I'm not," Nanao's face creased up and tears began to spill from her eyes._

"_Why not?" Shunsui questioned patiently, "I know you don't always feel comfortable talking about your feelings. But please, you need to talk to me."_

"_Its too much," Nanao slid her eyes shut and shook her head, "I cant deal with this right now."_

"_And you cant avoid it either," Shunsui pointed out forcing himself to keep calm despite Nanao's stubbornness, "This affects both of us. Why cant you just talk to me?" The last question came out rather harshly and Shunsui mentally slapped himself. Nanao winced at his sharp tone and looked as if she was about to throw something at him._

_Unohana who'd been standing back and allowing them to talk, sensed the rising tension and stepped in before either one of them said something they'd later regret. Sensing Unohana's movement, Shunsui glanced at Unohana and saw the warning look in her eyes. He'd been warned prior to this little meeting that he wasn't to distress Nanao in any way. He sighed and backed away from the bed, "Well if you wont talk to me about it. Will you at least talk to Retsu?"_

_Nanao watched as Shunsui retreated to the far corner of the room and leant his back heavily against the wall. He folded his arms across his bandaged chest and allowed his head to droop down._

"_Nanao," Unohana spoke in a calm and gentle tone as she went to sit by Nanao's bed._

_Nanao didn't answer. Instead she brought her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms tightly around her legs, whilst her chin dropped to rest against her knees._

"_I know its rather shocking news," Unohana said gently as she placed her hand on Nanao's head, "And I know its difficult to take in, let alone talk about. Especially in your current condition," she reassured Nanao, "But Shunsui is right. You do need to talk about this."_

_Nanao shook her head, "I cant deal with this right now."_

"_I understand that Nanao. I really do," Unohana moved her hand away from Nanao's head and wrapped her arm around the young woman's shoulders instead, "Its been a difficult few weeks for you. On top of everything else that's happened today, its logical for you to feel that way. If you don't want to talk things over yet, that's fine. But I implore you to think things over. It will do no good in the long run if you bury your head in the sand."_

"_What do you mean by that?" Nanao asked quietly._

"_Nanao-chan," Shunsui pushed himself away from the wall and stepped over to the other side of Nanao's bed. He then perched himself on the edge of her bed and reached for her hand, "She means, you need to decide what you want to do about the baby."_

"_The baby," Nanao repeated quietly,_

"_Our baby," Shunsui lifted her hand to his lips and planted a soft kiss on her fingers, "I already know how I feel about it, but what do you want Nanao-chan?"_

"_Nanao will you answer me one question please?" Unohana asked in a gentle tone "Have you ever considered before whether or not you'd want to have children some day?"_

"_No of course not," Nanao wiped at her face with the sleeve of the white robe she was wearing, "Some how I'd always thought that with being a Lieutenant of the Gotei 13, having children just simply wasn't an option." _

"_Nanao-chan," Shunsui leant down and rested his cheek on the top of her head, "Just take a good look at Toushiro-kun and Ran-chan. They're in the exact same position as us, yet they manage wonderfully with little Kota-kun."_

"_This is completely different Shunsui!" Nanao protested._

"_No it isn't. I think you'll find its exactly the same," Shunsui argued back. _

"_How can this possibly work Shunsui?" Nanao was starting to grow rather agitated, "I cant be in the office full time if there's a child to look after at home. I cant be a Mother full time if there's an office full of paperwork that's not going to get done."_

"_Nanao-chan," Shunsui's voice had a clear hint of hurt to it._

"_I just don't see how this can work Shunsui," fresh tears began to pour down Nanao's cheeks, "You just wouldn't be able to cope with the amount of paperwork I have to deal with on a regular basis."_

"_Is that what this is all about Nanao-chan? Paperwork?"_

"_Raising a child is a huge responsibility..." Nanao trailed off and an odd look crossed her features, which Shunsui never thought he'd ever see on Nanao's face._

"_Nanao-chan," he spoke in soft and gentle tone, "Are you scared?"_

_Nanao tensed up, "I'm not scared."_

"_Then what...?"_

_Nanao tilted her head to look Shunsui in the eye, "How can I look after a baby? How can I possibly care for it? When apparently I cant even look after myself properly. What if I hurt it? Just like I've been hurting you. Shunsui, I just...cant," Unable to finish her sentence, Nanao leant into Shunsui and buried her face in his chest, sobbing her eyes out._

"_Nanao-chan is that what you really think?" Shunsui pulled her closer and adjusted himself so he could lean back into the pillows, "You're worried you'll be a bad mother?"_

Unohanahad watched over them for a good half an hour before she'd decided to leave. Unknown to the pair, she had silently risen to her feet and crossed over to the door, intending on giving them some privacy.

She pulled the door to with a soft click and turned slowly on her heel to see Ukitake and Toushiro waiting for her, both of their faces were looking equally tense. She walked over to them, "Juushiro what is it?" She asked calmly.

"We have a problem," Ukitake's eyes darted to the approaching form of Komamura. Unohana followed his gaze and realisation dawned on her, "Can you give Shunsui a heads up Retsu?"

"Can you stall him for a few minutes?" Unohana was already back tracking to Nanao's room.

"I'll do it," Toushiro started walking to intercept Komamura, "Seeing as he's here to assist me I'll need to debrief him anyway. I want to know what his exact orders were anyway," he walked away quickly intending to put as much corridor between himself and Nanao's room possible.

"What do you want me to do Retsu?"

Unohana shared a look with Ukitake before quietly saying, "Return to Shunsui's room. I'll tell him to shunpo straight over there. It will give us a little bit more time."

"Okay," Ukitake turned on his heel and began walking the opposite way down the corridor from where Toushiro was speaking with Komamura.

Unohana slipped back into Nanao's room and locked the door behind her.

Glancing over to the bed, Unohana was pleased to see that Nanao was still snoozing in Shunsui's arms. She really hated to disturb them, but she had no choice.

"Shunsui," she called quietly.

Shunsui glanced over to her and she motioned for him to join her. He gave her a weary look before he carefully untangled himself from Nanao, "Shh I'll be back shortly Nanao-chan," he soothed when she started to stir.

He swept across the room towards her and in a low whisper he asked, "What is it Retsu?"

"Juushiro's just informed me that we have a slight situation. I know you want to be near Nanao. But please Shunsui, I need you to return to your room. Its.. Urgent."

"What's going on?"

"Juushiro will fill you in, he's waiting for you in your room."

"What about Nanao-chan?"

"Don't worry about her, I'll keep her safe. Now go," Unohana ordered calmly.

Shunsui reached his hand out to open the door but Unohana caught his wrist, "You cant be seen leaving that way. I suggest you shunpo straight to your room."

Shunsui gave her a quizzical look and cocked his head to one side while he reached out with his senses. He returned his gaze to her and asked, "Here for me?"

"It seems so."

Shunsui glanced down at his wrist, "I cant exactly shunpo with this thing on," he reminded her pointing to the white band on his wrist, "But if I take it off, wont it be dangerous being this close to Nanao-chan?"

"I suggest you take it off and shunpo out of here quickly, then put it straight back on," Unohana stepped away from him and headed over to Nanao's bed. With a flick of her wrist a kido barrier sprung up between her and Shunsui, "Get going."

After hearing the distinctive swish of shunpo, Unohana stepped over to Nanao's bed and perched herself on the edge, "Nanao, how are you feeling?" She asked as she rested her palm against Nanao's forehead.

"Where's Shunsui?" She asked, eyes darting towards the door.

"Shh its okay Nanao," Unohana sent a small amount of reiatsu into Nanao and sent her into a deep sleep. Once Nanao was out cold Unohana began bustling around the room.

* * *

><p>After conferring with Komamura, it became quickly apparent to Toushiro that he had no choice but to allow the enormous Captain to check on Nanao's status for himself. The Head-Captain had given specific instructions and Toushiro wasn't insane enough to interfere with said instructions. Komamura had to see for himself that Nanao was in an unconscious state and therefore unable to leave the Fourth with them.<p>

He was walking slowly down the corridor back to where Nanao's room was situated. He'd noticed that Ukitake had made an abrupt departure and had wondered where the hell he'd taken off to.

All too soon he'd reached Nanao's door and he lifted his hand to knock, he didn't think it was wise to be seen hesitating.

Within seconds Unohana appeared at the door and smiled at them, "Ah Toushiro and Captain Komamura" she greeted warmly, "How can I help you?"

"We're sorry to interrupt you Unohana," Toushiro spoke up in an even voice, "I've received orders from the Head-Captain. We need to check up on Lieutenant Ise's condition. Would it be possible for us to see her?"

"Nanao's in a very delicate state Toushiro," Unohana reminded him.

"I understand that Unohana, but orders are orders," Toushiro was secretly hoping that Unohana would deny their request. As the chief medic in Soul Society, she did have the power to refuse an order from the Head-Captain if it threatened the health of a patient. He had a feeling Unohana knew what he was thinking.

"I'll let you see her for a moment, however please ensure that you keep your spiritual pressures under control. Nanao's quite sensitive at the moment," Unohana's calm mask never once faltered.

Toushiro quickly caught Unohana's eye and the motherly Captain gave him the tiniest nod, letting him know it was okay. Toushiro felt slightly baffled, wasn't Shunsui still in there? It was highly likely too that Shunsui would kick up a fuss if they even mentioned taking him and Nanao to the First. Just what was Unohana playing at he wondered.

She stepped to one side and allowed them to enter the room, Toushiro braced himself and quickly stepped through the door not knowing what to expect.

Scanning the room he had to do a double take when he realized that Shunsui wasn't here. His eyes darted over to Nanao's bed and he couldn't help his eyebrows shooting up into his hairline with shock.

Komamura had followed him in the room and was standing to his left. Unohana breezed past them and stepped over to the bed, making a show of checking Nanao's vital signs, "As you can see Nanao's very ill. She still hasn't regained consciousness but she is now stable."

Toushiro had to marvel at Unohana's quick work. She must've had only a few minutes tops between Ukitake warning her and somehow managing to usher Shunsui out the room. Toushiro knew how hard it was to fake being unconscious, Unohana had pulled out the stops to ensure Nanao remained safely where she was.

Unohana had most likely placed Nanao in a deep slumber, almost mimicking a coma. Nanao had been tucked up in the bed and had an oxygen mask covering her mouth and nose. She still had the same I.V line running into the back of her hand that Toushiro had spotted earlier. Unohana had also hooked Nanao up to a machine that monitored spiritual pressure and her heart rate, which beeped away at a slow rhythm. One look at the machine and Toushiro noticed that Nanao's spiritual pressure was practically non-existent.

With Nanao's emaciated appearance, pale complexion and dark circles ringing her eyes, the overall effect was pretty damn impressive.

"Well I've seen enough," Komamura spoke in a low voice, "Forgive the intrusion Captain Unohana, but the Head-Captains orders were insistently clear," Komamura went to step out into the corridor, "Now there's just the matter of Captain Kyouraku."

Toushiro hung back for a few seconds and glanced at Unohana with an enquiring look on his face. The gentle Captain simply returned his gaze with a silent 'Don't ask.'

* * *

><p>"Shunsui be reasonable," Ukitake admonished as he stood in front of the door, barricading it so Shunsui couldn't make his escape, "Don't you ever listen to me any more?"<p>

"Juu for the last time, get out of my god damn way," Shunsui made to push past him, but Ukitake stubbornly refused to move, "And your idea sucks. I refuse to go along with it."

"Just give me and Retsu time to explain the situation to the Head-Captain first!" Ukitake argued back, "If you go barging in now then..."

"Then what Juu?" Shunsui tried to grab the front of Ukitake's robes and turf him out the way, but Ukitake grabbed his wrist, side stepped and twisted Shunsui's arm into a lock. Ukitake then pushed him forward and pinned him against the door. Shunsui let out a deep grunt as his injured chest pressed against the door, "Then what?" Shunsui growled out.

Ukitake sighed, "If you act all rash and just go barging in, all it will do is irritate the Head-Captain. It will be a lot harder to reason with him if he's in a bad mood."

Shunsui placed a hand flat against the door and pushed off, alleviating some off the pressure on his chest, "Do you really think I give a damn about what sort of mood he'll be in? Here's a news flash for you. I don't."

"Well you should care! Cant you see me and Retsu just want the best possible outcome for you and Nanao?" Ukitake argued back, "Do you really think we want to see either of you being stripped of your ranks or tossed out of the Gotei 13, or even locked away? Do you even care about that!"

"Juu," Shunsui's arm that'd been supporting his weight wobbled and gave way, so his chest slammed back into the door. He let out a sharp gasp of pain and brought his wobbling hand up to clutch at his chest, which was beginning to spasm.

"Shunsui what's wrong?" Ukitake released his hold on his best friend and helped guide him to the bed and made him sit down.

Shunsui rubbed at his chest until the spasms and pain had started to subside.

"I'm sorry Shunsui," Ukitake sat down next to him on the bed.

Shunsui then turned slightly and grabbed Ukitake by the front of his robes and pulled him closer, "Of course I care about what happens to Nanao-chan. I want the best possible outcome for Nanao-chan," he paused before adding, "And the baby too," Shunsui released Ukitake's robes and faced forward again.

Ukitake pulled in a sharp breath, "Baby!" He exclaimed loudly.

"Yeah," Shunsui confirmed quietly, "Nanao-chan's pregnant," he rose to his feet and wandered over to the chair where his Captains haori and his pink haori had been neatly folded up. He grabbed his Captains haori and with a bit of difficulty he managed to thread his arms through the sleeves. His black shihakusho had been damaged beyond repair and had been thrown straight into the trash.

"Well that changes everything Shunsui," Ukitake slowly got to his feet and crossed over to the door, leaning his back against it.

Shunsui picked up his pink haori too but didn't put it on, "Juu I know you're only trying to help, but I'm not going to lay here pretending to be more injured then what I am, while you and Retsu try to smooth things over. I'm also not going to be dragged to the First against my will either. All I've ever wanted to do since this whole thing started, was to protect Nanao-chan. I never meant to drag either you or Retsu into this whole mess. The same goes for Ran-chan and Toushiro-kun. But unfortunately you all had to stick your noses in."

"Its only because we care Shunsui," Ukitake frowned at him, "Neither of us wanted to see you and Nanao suffering."

Shunsui stepped over to where Ukitake was once again guarding the door, "Lets face it Juu, no matter if Yama-jii's in a good mood or a bad mood. At the end of the day its me that's caused this whole mess. So it should be me doing the explaining. I'm not going to be a coward who hides behind his friends when he's in trouble, and I'm certainly not going to be a coward who needs to be dragged to face his consequences. Now I repeat, stand aside Juu. I'm going to the First to see Yama-jii."

"At least let me and Retsu accompany you. As I understand the Head-Captain not only wants a full report on the situation from Toushiro, but he also wants to see me and Retsu too," Ukitake stood to one side.

"Do as you please Juu," Shunsui reached for the door and pulled it open, "Whether you're there or not doesn't change the fact that Yama-jii will come down on me like a ton of bricks."

Shunsui swept out of the room and started marching down the corridor. Ukitake followed him and fell into step beside him. As they turned the first corner they came face to face with Unohana, Toushiro and Komamura who were approaching them from the opposite way. Shunsui slowed down to a stop and Unohana was soon in front of him, "Shunsui where do you think you're going? You're injured, I haven't given you permission to leave."

"I kept telling him he was being idiotic Retsu," Ukitake piped up from behind him.

"I'm going to the First Retsu," Shunsui slid his eyes closed, "I believe old man Yama-jii is waiting for an explanation on my part."

"Well if that's the case we'll accompany you then," Unohana replied indicating the small group.

"You don't have to do that. I don't want either of you getting involved with this," Shunsui began to protest.

"Tch, you idiot," Toushiro had folded his arms across his chest, "We're all involved now whether we wanted to be or not."

Ukitake stepped forward and rested his hand on Shunsui's shoulder, "Lets just get this over and done with Shunsui."

"Right, but before we go," Shunsui opened his eyes and glanced at Unohana, "Retsu, can I please see Nanao-chan before we go?"

"She's sleeping Shunsui," Unohana shot him a warning look, "I can let you have a quick visit, but we really shouldn't delay going to the First any longer."

* * *

><p>A few minutes later Shunsui quietly entered Nanao's room. He was slightly taken aback when he saw Nanao in her unconscious state, hooked up to a machine with an oxygen mask on her face. But he soon realised Unohana must have taken steps to ensure that Nanao would remain right where she was. He didn't necessarily agree with it, but at least she was in the best place possible.<p>

He perched himself on the edge of the bed and reached for one of her hands. Leaning over he used his other hand to slip off the mask and then lowered his lips to hers. When he pulled away he whispered quietly, "Nanao-chan, I love you. I wanted to see you before I left for the First," he trailed his hand down till it came to rest against Nanao's stomach, "I know I will be punished for my actions but as long as you and the baby is safe, then I can deal with whatever is thrown at me. If Yama-jii happens to strip me of my Captaincy and boots me out of the Gotei 13, I'm taking you with me. I may even be tossed in prison. Whatever happens, I promise I will be back for you. I will be there for you and our child. Just please get well again. For me and for the baby."

"I love you," As he leant in to plant another kiss on her lips, a lone tear splashed onto Nanao's forehead. Shunsui pulled away and then pressed his lips over Nanao's stomach, "And you too."

He got to his feet and unwrapped his pink haori. He gave it a little shake then draped it over Nanao's still body. Before he left and stepped out the door he gave her one last look and said, "Goodbye Nanao-chan."

* * *

><p>I realise the story has been ShunNanao heavy lately. But in the next couple of chapters it will revert back to being mainly Hitsu/Matsu again. Just need to get these few vital chapters out. Hope you all dont mind, it will be well worth it at the end of the story =) See you next chapter!


	29. Chapter 29

Hello! Thank you to everybody who read and reviewed the last chapter. I'm glad you enjoyed it. Happy Reading ^_^

* * *

><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 29<p>

When Rangiku arrived back home she could hear Kotaro crying and wailing before she'd even opened the front door. She stepped into the hallway and closed the door quietly behind her. From the sound of it Kotaro was having a full blown meltdown and Momo was doing her best to calm him down.

"Calm down little Shiro-chan," Momo tried to placate him, "Come and sit down."

"I don't want to sit down," Kotaro half wailed and half cried back.

"You're getting yourself all worked up over nothing."

In between his tears and upset wails, Kotaro mumbled an incomprehensible reply.

Rangiku had heard enough. She walked a few steps down the hallway and stood in the doorway of the living room. There were already several cushions scattered about the room. There was an overturned beaker of juice on the table that was slowly beginning to drip onto the carpeted floor. There were discarded crayons and doodles everywhere, and then there was Kotaro. Who was clutching his stuffed dragon Yori tightly to his chest, which he suddenly launched across the room.

As Rangiku was about to step in, she felt a flicker of spiritual pressure and then heard the slight whistling of the wind. Glancing at Kotaro she saw his tiny body glowing a soft green colour.

"Kotaro stop!" Momo shouted as a gust of wind kicked up and scattered a small pile of paperwork that Toushiro had placed to one side. The pieces of paper got picked up by a current of air and then got sucked into the growing whirlwind that was beginning to swirl around Kotaro.

Rangiku marched into the living room and raised her own pressure, instantly sweeping away Kotaro's tantrum induced tornado. She planted her hands on her hips and yelled, "Kotaro Hitsugaya, that is ENOUGH!"

Kotaro froze and all that could be heard was the rustling of papers as they fell to the floor, "Mummy.." he whined.

"No!" Rangiku held up her hand to silence him, "I'm speaking not you. So you better be listening."

Kotaro stared back at her through red watery eyes, he was panting slightly from all the screaming and wailing he'd been doing, "Mummy," he wailed again.

"Now then," Rangiku crossed the room and calmly scooped him off the floor, "You are having a time out mister," she stepped back out into the hallway- Kotaro kicking and screaming as she went- and placed him down in the designated naughty corner. As soon as Rangiku had sat Kotaro down, he began to cry while he angrily beat his fists against the floor as he kicked his legs out, "I will be back in five minutes."

Rangiku walked back into the living room, ignoring Kotaro's wailing and whining and his cries of "Mummy."

She closed the door behind her cutting off the noise and took in a deep breath. A quick look around the living room and she determined nothing had been damaged. There were just a few things out of place, plus the paperwork scattered around the room.

"I'm sorry Rangiku-san," Momo rushed to apologise, "I couldn't get him to settle down."

"Its okay Momo you don't need to apologise. If anyone should be apologising its me. Kotaro knows better then to act that way," Rangiku dropped down to her knees beside the coffee table and picked up the overturned beaker. She reached for the box of tissues and began mopping up the juice.

"He seemed quite upset when Toushiro left and he kept asking for you," Momo had started to gather up the scattered paperwork, "I tried to keep him busy and distracted."

"Thank you Momo," Rangiku smiled back, "For doing what you could. Its rare for Kotaro to have a tantrum like that. But when he does, he can be quite a handful."

"Its probably the shock of his power emerging," Momo placed the small stack of papers she'd gathered onto the low table, "Besides, I've seen Toushiro throw much worst before. Especially when he got really worked up."

"Father like son I guess," Rangiku sighed, "But still. I should have come home sooner. I should have insisted that Toshi went with Captain Unohana to find Nanao and I should have come home to sort Kotaro out."

"Well," Momo began but hesitated.

Rangiku glanced at her curiously, "What is it?"

"Well, Nanao-san looked very ill and very upset," Momo pointed out, "I cant think of anyone better then you and Captain Unohana to go after her, to help her out. I just cant imagine Toushiro being able to calm down a distraught woman that isn't you. But calming down his distressed son, well that would come naturally to him. Don't feel bad Rangiku-san, you were both where you needed to be the most."

"When you look at it that way, I guess you're right," Rangiku scooped up the sodden mess of tissues and tossed them in the bin.

"How is Nanao-san? Is she going to be all right?"

"We were still waiting to hear something when your message arrived," Rangiku padded around the room picking up cushions and tossing them back onto the couches, "Shunsui was having a massive argument with Captain Unohana. I couldn't tell what they were arguing about, but its obviously something significant."

"Oh no!" Momo clapped her hands over her mouth before saying, "Nanao-san and Captain Kyouraku aren't in trouble are they?"

Rangiku flopped down heavily on the couch and began kneading at her temples, "Toushiro was ordered by the Head-Captain to place both of them under arrest."

"But that's unfair!" Momo cried out in alarm, "It was obvious to everyone in that meeting that Nanao-san was unwell."

"I know," Rangiku got to her feet and plucked a few tissues from a box on the table, "We all did what we could to get them to the Fourth as soon as possible. Just to help delay things."

Momo nodded in approval, "I really hope Nanao-san will be okay."

Rangiku stepped over to the living room door and slid it open, Kotaro looked up at her sadly from his place on the floor, "Have you calmed down now young man?"

Kotaro gave her a little nod and fresh tears began to pour down his face, "I'm sorry Mummy," he apologised, wiping at his tear stained face with his sleeve.

"Come here Sweetie," she replied softly, accepting his apology. She bent down and scooped him up into her arms before returning to the living room. She sat on the couch and perched Kotaro sideways on her knee then began mopping at his face with the tissues, "You owe Momo an apology too Kotaro," she commented as she wiped at his gooey nose.

Kotaro flopped heavily against Rangiku's front and quietly mumbled, "I'm sorry Auntie Momo."

"That's okay little Shiro-chan," Momo smiled back kindly before fishing behind her back for something, "By the way, I don't think Yori can actually fly," she said producing the toy from behind her back.

"Yori!" Kotaro jumped off Rangiku's knee with a thump and went padding over to Momo reaching his hands out for his favourite toy. Momo handed it back to him and Kotaro clutched it tightly to his chest, "I'm sorry Yori, I didn't mean to throw you. I forgot you couldn't fly. Did you hurt yourself?"

"Hey!" Rangiku chirped in pretending to sound hurt "Why does the dragon get a better apology then me and Momo?"

Kotaro looked at her and shrugged. Rangiku just sighed, that was typical.

* * *

><p>Toushiro was the first to arrive outside the First Divisions Headquarters. Glancing over his shoulder he saw Ukitake, Unohana and Shunsui approaching slowly several meters away. Before leaving the Fourths infirmary, they'd all decided on walking rather then using flash step. It had been a silent agreement between them. They all needed to use the extra time walking would produce to think things over.<p>

Toushiro still didn't quite know where he stood in all of this. The first he'd heard about what had been happening, had literally been that same morning before they'd gone into the meeting. So its not like he'd been involved in anything from the start. Although Rangiku knew exactly what had been transpiring and had informed him, he didn't want to drag her into this. If the Head-Captain asked him what her involvement was in all of this, he'd just simply state that Rangiku at the time was just concerned for her friends obviously declining health.

He heard a slight clearing of a throat and glanced back over his shoulder to see that the three senior Captains had caught up to him. Unohana had her hands clasped in front of her, she'd closed her eyes too, yet her face had a calm and serene look about it. Shunsui who couldn't meet anyone's eye, had a very morose look about him. Toushiro had no doubt in his mind that Shunsui was worried about the outcome of this meeting. He wasn't worried for himself though, he was worried for Nanao. Then there was Ukitake, who had a very serious look on his face and generally looked uneasy.

Toushiro could sense all of their hesitations about facing the Head-Captain. He could understand why Shunsui would feel that way, but he wasn't quite sure why Ukitake and especially Unohana were feeling the same way too.

Unable to help himself, he voiced this thought out aloud, startling the three Captains out of their private reveries.

Ukitake sighed heavily before giving him the answer in a nutshell, "The Head-Captain knew that something was going on with Shunsui. He asked me and Retsu to get to the bottom of it, he left the matter and I quote, 'In our capable hands,' I think the Head-Captain wanted it dealing with discreetly," Ukitake paused for breath before continuing, "I think its safe to say that we've failed miserably."

In Toushiro's eyes that seemed like a fair point. However he couldn't get rid of the nagging feeling that there was something more at stake. Something that they weren't telling him. He decided to call them out on it, "But that's not all is it? There's definitely something else going on here." When neither of them answered him he carried on, "That much is obvious. Why else would the two of you," he indicated Shunsui and Unohana, "Of all people be arguing. I find it hard to believe that the gentle, softly spoken Captain of the Fourth and the laid back and relaxed Captain of the Eighth, has much to argue about. Unohana has obviously gone to great lengths to ensure Nanao would remain safely in the Fourth, she even went as far as to make it appear like Nanao was in a coma. What is that all about? Then there's you," he pointed at Ukitake, "Why were you so determined that Shunsui should wait at the Fourth while you and Unohana smooth things over with the Head-Captain first? I also saw the look of pain on Shunsui's face when he emerged from Nanao's room before we came here. That's the look of a man whose about to lose everything. Its obvious there's something more at stake here," Toushiro hadn't even realised he'd been shouting at them until he'd finished.

After a very long silence Shunsui stepped forward and placed a hand on his shoulder, "You're sharp kid, I'll give you that."

"It doesn't take a genius to figure out that you three are up to your necks in it," Toushiro replied dryly.

"The thing is Toushiro," Ukitake spoke up, "For once, neither one of us knows how the Head-Captain is going to react in this case. Yes Shunsui's disobeyed orders, neglected his duties has a Captain, withheld information that could have potentially proved fatal, and failed to ask for help when it was obvious he was in way over his head. But me and Retsu are to blame just as much as Shunsui is. Me for failing to be there for him when it was obvious he needed me, and Retsu for standing back for so long and allowing things to worsen. I know Shunsui didn't make it easy for us, but we are his friends and should have known better and been more persistent with him."

"Juu this isn't yours and Retsu's fault. This is all my doing, so stop blaming yourself."

"We're in this together Shunsui!" Ukitake argued.

Unohana let out a soft sigh and interrupted them both, "There's no use arguing about this now. Lets face it, we're all simply just delaying having to go in," Unohana had been walking towards the entrance of the First, she paused and glanced back at them, "Let us not forget why we are all here, and that's to ensure that we get the best possible outcome for Shunsui, Nanao and their child," Unohana turned on her heel and disappeared through the doorway.

"Child?" Toushiro asked turning to Shunsui and Ukitake.

"Yeah Kiddo," Shunsui dropped his hand from Toushiro's shoulder and brushed past him, following Unohana's lead by going inside and leaving him with Ukitake.

"I only just found out too Toushiro," Ukitake sighed and made to go after Unohana and Shunsui, "It certainly changes everything doesn't it?"

"It also complicates everything too," Toushiro replied following Ukitake inside.

* * *

><p>Ten minutes later they'd all been escorted to the Head-Captains office by Sasakibe, the Lieutenant of the First Division, "The Head-Captain is expecting you. Go right on in," he instructed before turning on his heel and heading back to his own office.<p>

They all shared a glance before Toushiro lifted his fist, "Here goes," he knocked against the thick wooden door and awaited for a reply.

"ENTER!" The Head-Captains gruff voice bellowed literally two seconds later.

Toushiro braced himself then pushed the door open and stepped inside. Ukitake, Unohana and Shunsui all filed in behind him without saying a word.

When Toushiro stepped into the large spacious office, he noticed that the Head-Captain was sat in his chair, facing the open wall of his office that overlooked the vast complex maze that was the Seireitei. The Head-Captain had showed no sign whatsoever that he'd heard them enter, yet the proper etiquette dictated that they had to wait for him to acknowledge them first.

Toushiro stepped forward and came to a stop a couple of metres in front of the Head-Captains desk. He could sense that Ukitake, Unohana and Shunsui had lined up side by side roughly a metre behind him.

After what felt like an age, the Head-Captain finally turned his chair towards them all. He swept his heavy gaze over the three senior Captains, pausing and staring at each of them in turn with much contempt and disdain.

Toushiro didn't dare to glance behind him, but he could tell from the Head-Captains look of disgust that Yamamoto was displeased with what he was seeing. Very displeased.

"Deliver your report, Captain Hitsugaya," The Head-Captain finally grunted without taking his eyes off the three Captains standing behind Toushiro.

Toushiro skipped right on ahead to his actions after receiving his orders to bring in Kyouraku and Ise after the meeting had ended. He omitted a few facts and was just explaining how he'd ordered Rangiku to accompany Unohana to the World of the Living to retrieve Nanao, when the Head-Captain suddenly slammed his hands down on the desk and roared "LOOK AT ME!"

Toushiro felt a jolt run through his body which was quickly followed by a moments confusion. He'd been keeping eye contact the whole time and had only looked away for the briefest of a second. Glancing back at the Head-Captain, he realised that Yamamoto's gaze wasn't levelled on him, and was in fact looking right over him at his fellow Captains behind him.

"How dare you stand before me with such disgraceful expressions on your faces. Doesn't either one of you have the balls to look me in the eye! And you call yourselves Captains. You all disgust me! This is beyond disgraceful," The Head-Captain slammed his fist down on his desk again before bellowing, "DISGRACEFUL!"

"Captain Hitsugaya," the Head-Captain boomed a few seconds later.

"Sir," Toushiro snapped back to attention.

"How much do you truly know about the situation? How long have you known what's been going on?"

Toushiro discreetly swallowed the lump in his throat, he could feel several beads of sweat trickling down his back, "I didn't know anything about the situation until five minutes before the meeting this morning, Sir."

"And so you've been covering for these three incompetent fools ever since?" Yamamoto yelled pointing an angry finger at the three behind Toushiro.

"No sir," Toushiro replied with an even voice, "The actions I've taken have been based solely on my own judgement of the situation."

"And what exactly was your judgement of the situation?" Yamamoto shot back hotly.

"That I shouldn't immediately jump to conclusions. I deemed the best course of action was to take no action for the time being," Toushiro was feeling uncomfortably hot, he could sense Hyourimaru's displeasure in the back of his mind.

"Is that so?" The Head-Captain asked in a dangerously low voice. Toushiro wasn't exactly sure whether or not the question was rhetorical. He had to resist the urge to fidget and pull at the collar of his uniform.

"Get out," The Head-Captain quietly said after a few long minutes of silence.

"Excuse me?" Toushiro asked somewhat dumbly.

"YOU HEARD ME, GET OUT!" The Head-Captain roared back, "ARE YOU DEAF OR SOMETHING, YOU'RE DIMISSED. NOW GET THE HELL OUT OF MY OFFICE CAPTAIN HITSUGAYA."

Toushiro didn't need to be told twice. He turned on his heel and headed straight for the door. He didn't spare the three remaining Captains a look. He even skipped formalities and didn't bother to bow respectfully before leaving the room.

Once he'd clicked the door shut behind him, he slid his eyes closed and took in a deep breath and counted to ten. He then slowly released the breath he'd been holding and slowly peeked his eyes open. He was surprised to see Lieutenant Sasakibe standing before him, waiting to escort him back outside.

"Sasakibe," he acknowledged.

"This way please Captain Hitsugaya," Sasakibe politely indicated for him to follow.

They'd made it a few metres down the long corridor when they both felt the Head-Captains reiatsu spike and the temperature of the surrounding areas hiked up several degrees. The paper walls of the corridor took on an orangey glow and Toushiro paused to glance back over his shoulder. Through the paper walls he could make out the Head-Captains fiery form glowing red hot with rage, which cast three distinctive shadows of the senior Captains against the paper wall. Just as Toushiro remembered that Shunsui's reiatsu reserves had been drastically drained and that he also had a reiatsu sealing band on. He saw Shunsui's massive form fall to his knees then slump forward to the floor.

As Toushiro turned away and began walking again the Head-Captains voice boomed like thunder, "INCOMPETANCE! NEVER BEFORE IN MY LIFE HAVE I SEEN SUCH INCOMPETANT FOOLS AS THE ONES STANDING BEFORE ME!" Toushiro heard a loud thud as the Head-Captain slammed his wooden staff against his office floor, "INCOMPETANCE!"

A shiver ran down Toushiro's back and he couldn't help but feel glad that he wasn't in there with them at this current moment.

* * *

><p>All was quiet in the Hitsugaya's home. Momo had returned to the Fifth Division and now Rangiku was curled up on the couch cuddling Kotaro while he had a much needed nap. Rangiku wanted to have a good talk with Kotaro, to find out exactly what had happened moments before his power had emerged. But Kotaro was so tired out with having a meltdown that Rangiku determined it would be for the best if he had a rest first.<p>

Kotaro had been sleeping soundly for a good half an hour and Rangiku had no intentions of waking him up yet. He was draped over her chest and she couldn't move very far without waking him. So instead of trying to move, she decided to stay put for awhile. Listening to his gentle breathing and the odd snuffling noise, Rangiku soon found herself nodding off too.

It wasn't until she felt another weight pressing against her side, did she wake up again. Peeking her eyes open she saw Toushiro perched on the edge of the couch gazing down at them.

"Hey," he greeted softly and brushed a stray strand of hair away from her face before crushing his lips against hers, "Sorry if I woke you," he added once he pulled away.

"Its okay," she smiled back. She glanced over to the clock, expecting it to be quite late. However she was surprised to see that Toushiro had arrived home quite early, "I wasn't expecting you to be back so soon. I thought you needed to report in to the Head-Captain?"

Toushiro broke his gaze away from Rangiku, "I already did," he replied as he rested his hand against Kotaro's head.

"How did it go?" Rangiku reached her hand up and cupped Toushiro's chin in her hand and turned his face back to hers. She caught the expression on his face and knew it hadn't gone well, "That bad then," Rangiku got a better grip on Kotaro and carefully lifted and shuffled herself back further into the couch, creating a bit more room for Toushiro.

Toushiro took the offered room and settled down beside her on the couch. He wrapped his arm around Rangiku's shoulders and planted a few more kisses up and down the column of her neck. He broke off his kisses and rested his head against hers, "Yeah it was pretty bad. The Head-Captain had no interest in what I had to say. He just wanted to get Shunsui, Ukitake and Unohana together. I wouldn't like to be in their shoes right now."

"What about Nanao is she," Rangiku began but Toushiro cut her off with a kiss.

"Safely in the Fourth still," he mumbled against her lips, "Unohana made sure of that."

"I don't suppose you know what's wrong with her yet then?" Rangiku asked as she played with a strand of Kotaro's hair.

"Not fully," A slight frown worked its way onto Toushiro's face, "But I do know one thing."

Rangiku raised a perfectly groomed eyebrow, "What is it?"

"Nanao's pregnant."

Rangiku's eyes went wide and her whole face lit up, her mouth opened into a quiet 'Oh' but before she could say or do anything, Toushiro's hand came up and covered her mouth, "Don't scream the house down, you'll wake up Kotaro."

"This is great!" Rangiku said in a hushed whisper, "Do they know if its a boy or girl?"

"Rangiku," Toushiro gave her a serious look, "I found out literally moments before we went in to see the Head-Captain. Ukitake had only just found out too. There wasn't exactly time to stop and have a friendly chat about it. I'm not even sure whether or not Nanao knows about it either."

Rangiku sighed, "I hope everything turns out all right for them."

"It now all depends on how the Head-Captain reacts and what he decides to do about the situation. We've tried to help Shunsui and Nanao as best we can, but unfortunately the matter is out of our hands now."

They both fell into a contemplative silence. Rangiku was secretly wondering whether the baby would be a boy or girl and who it would look like the most. While Toushiro was secretly running over all the possible punishments the Head-Captain could dish out to Shunsui and whether he could find a loophole in any of them.

They were both pulled from their thoughts when Kotaro stirred from his nap and let out a sleepy yawn.

"Hey sweetie, did you have a nice nap?" Rangiku leant forward and planted a kiss on his forehead.

Kotaro grinned back at her and nodded, "I had a dream about a dragon Mummy," Kotaro's gaze fell on Toushiro and his grinned widened, "Daddy's home."

"Yes I am little man, and I want to have a word with you," Toushiro straightened up from his slouched position and levelled his serious gaze on his son.

"About what Daddy?" Kotaro asked sweetly.

"About your behaviour towards Momo today," Toushiro replied sternly.

Kotaro's happy grin fell from his face to be replaced by a sad frown, "Mummy already told me I was naughty."

"And now I'm telling you again," Toushiro replied, in his full on dad mode, "You should have known better then to behave that way. I am very disappointed in you Kotaro."

Although Toushiro hadn't raised his voice and certainly wasn't shouting at Kotaro, Rangiku could see Kotaro's eyes shining with unshed tears.

"Don't ever do that again," Toushiro said in the same low stern voice, "Do I make myself clear?"

Kotaro lowered his head in shame and gave a little nod.

"Kotaro," Toushiro repeated, "Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes Daddy," Kotaro answered quietly, "I'm sorry."

"Thats okay," Toushiro accepted his apology and let the matter drop, "Now come here and give me a hug little man," Toushiro got to his feet then swept down and scooped Kotaro off the couch. They shared a hug then Toushiro raised him high above his head and began flying him around the living room like an aeroplane.

Rangiku watched them with a fond smile on her face, so much for trying to talk to Kotaro about his emerging powers. Maybe she'll get the chance later on. Her stomach growled and glancing at the clock again, she decided it was about time they had something to eat. She got to her feet and called loudly, "Well seeing as you two are playing I guess I'll have to eat all on my own then."

"Oh oh I'm hungry too!" Kotaro wiggled in Toushiro's arms wanting to be put down, "Can I have a sandwich Mummy?"

"Sure but I expect you both to come and help me make them," Rangiku replied as she stepped out of the living room and through into the kitchen.

"Can I spread the bread Mummy?" Kotaro asked as he came running into the kitchen behind her.

"Yes Kotaro, just make sure the butter goes on the bread and not the floor this time," Rangiku grinned at him then placed the bread and butter in front of him, "Wash your hands first sweetie."

"What's Daddy going to do?"

Toushiro who'd been rummaging in the fridge closed the door and answered, "Meat."

"Okay, looks like I'm doing the salad then," Rangiku chirped cheerfully.

They all settled down into their various tasks and Rangiku couldn't help but smile in amusement at Kotaro. Who would tell Toushiro off every time he saw his Daddy sneak some meat into his mouth, "Mummy! Daddy's eating all the meat again. Daddy don't do that, its bad manners!"

"I'm hungry, I haven't eaten since breakfast," Toushiro defended himself.

"Its still bad manners," Kotaro argued back with a grin on his face, "Isn't that right Mummy?"

"That's right sweetie, you tell Daddy," Rangiku grinned back, as she began slicing up the tomatoes. It was always fun teasing Toushiro.

"See Daddy even Mummy says its wrong," Kotaro grinned back at him. He waved his butter knife triumphantly and a huge blob of butter went slop onto the floor.

"Kotaro!" Toushiro called in his stern voice, "You do not wave knives around like that, and look at the mess on the floor."

"Clean it up sweet-" Rangiku gasped and then cried out in pain as she felt the knife she'd been using slip and slice into her hand. She dropped the knife instantly and as she brought her hand up she saw blood streaming from the cut on her palm, which was flowing down her wrist.

"Rangiku!"

"Mummy!"

Rangiku clutched her injured hand in her good hand and stepped away from the kitchen counter, "I'm okay."

"Let me see it Rangiku," Toushiro said as he stepped over to her.

"I'm fine really, its just a little nick," Rangiku protested and backed away from Toushiro.

"No you're not Rangiku," Toushiro frowned when he saw the amount of blood dripping onto the kitchen floor, "Now don't be childish and let me see it."

Toushiro grasped her hand and gently prised her good hand away, he quickly ran his eyes over the wound and saw that Rangiku had a long, deep slice running from her thumb and diagonally across her palm. He grabbed a nearby tea towel and pressed it against the wound.

"Here hold on to this while I grab a towel," As Toushiro hurried out the kitchen he called over his shoulder, "Kotaro keep an eye on Mummy please."

Kotaro nodded and hurried over to Rangiku and wrapped his arms around her leg, "Mummy are you okay, does it hurt?" He asked full of concern.

"I'm okay sweetie," Rangiku lied. In truth she was feeling a little sick and faint. She sank down to her knees.

"Does Mummy want a hug?" Kotaro asked as he stepped behind her and latched his little arms around her middle, "I'll make you feel better."

Rangiku was about to thank him, but she'd started to feel a little strange. Her whole body felt cool and a little numb and her skin felt like it was tingling and prickling. The cut on her hand was throbbing painfully and was the only part of her body that still felt warm.

Toushiro returned and stepped back over to her, "Come out the way please, little man," he instructed as he crouched back down next to her, "Here let me see it Rangiku," he grabbed the blood stained tea towel and discarded it to one side.

Toushiro pulled in a surprised gasp and uttered, "What the hell?"

Rangiku sighed, "Does it really look that bad?"

"Give me your other hand Rangiku," Toushiro instructed again.

"What? Why?"

"Just let me see it," he replied sounding a little annoyed.

Rangiku held her other hand out to him and he started checking her other palm over.

"I don't get it," He said a few seconds later, "Are you sure you cut yourself?"

"No Toushiro, of course I didn't cut myself," she replied sarcastically, "I just thought I'd bleed all over the place just for fun."

"Then why has your cut just magically disappeared then?"

"What!" Rangiku snatched her hand back and had a good look. Her hand was covered in blood, yet where the long deep slice had been literally minutes before, had now vanished, "What the hell?"

"MUMMY!" Kotaro screamed loudly. Both Rangiku and Toushiro whipped their heads around to see him clutching his hand and shaking, "IT HURTS," he cried out.

Toushiro hurried over to him and Rangiku was on her feet in seconds, "What is it sweetie? What hurts?"

"My hand," Kotaro replied starting to cry.

Toushiro prised Kotaro's hand open, just like he'd done with Rangiku. They were both very surprised and very shocked to see his hand covered in blood. But what was even more surprising to them, was the cut on Kotaro's palm. It was the exact same cut that had been on Rangiku's palm only minutes before.

"Toshi.." Rangiku stared at him completely dumbfounded.

Toushiro just stared back at her looking equally shocked and confused.


	30. Chapter 30

Hello Everybody! I know its been close to a month since I last updated. I've had quite a lot going on this month. I've started studying again, I've written a short (not so short) one shot as a Birthday present for a friend. Then there was work, a brief phase of writers block and I've been ill to boot :O But rest assured, my muse for STWOY is back in full force, (Now I've managed to get that M rated Shunsui/Nanao fic out of my head) Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed the last chapter, apologies for making you wait a bit longer then normal. I hope this chapter makes up for it :D If you have'nt already, you should check out Kiss Me Better Nanao-chan. It took a good 2-3 weeks to write inbetween everything else that was happening. Happy Reading ^_^

* * *

><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 30<p>

Shunsui couldn't breathe.

The air had literally been robbed from his lungs. He was close to blacking out and all he was aware of was the searing heat all around him and the oppressive weight of the Head-Captains spiritual pressure bearing down on him. Trapping him on the floor, like gravity itself was crushing him to death.

The sweat coating his body felt as though it'd reached boiling point and was scolding his own skin. The hairs on the back of his hands had long ago been singed off. He could even feel the heat radiating off his own teeth.

"_Sensei please stop! You're going to kill him!" _

Ukitake's voice sounded very distant in his ears, although he knew his good friend was probably shouting.

"_Head-captain please desist. Shunsui's spiritual pressure is very low as it is. Not to mention that he's wearing a reiatsu seal."_

Unohana's voice pleaded. Shunsui noticed that she sounded quite stressed.

Shunsui forced his eyes open. His vision was blurry and all he could see was the outline of his hand and a thin white strap clipped onto his wrist.

Reiatsu seal. Right. He'd worn it to protect Nanao-chan but hadn't removed it prior to seeing the Head-Captain. How stupid of him.

He saw Unohana's hand reached out and grip his wrist, intending to remove the band.

"LEAVE HIM!"

The Head-Captains voice sounded like a clap of thunder in his ears. He then saw Unohana's hand reluctantly retract.

He needed air. He needed to breathe. He needed to survive for Nanao-chan and their child. But first, he needed to get that damn band off his wrist.

With the Head-Captains oppressive spiritual pressure bearing down on him. Just the simple act of pulling his hand closer to his body, felt as though he was trying to move a mountain. He slowly inched it closer to his body, while at the same time fighting to stay conscious.

His other hand was trapped under his body. He'd lost the feeling in it several minutes ago, which felt more like hours. There was no way he could lift his body and free it. So instead he brought his wrist up to his mouth and began to weakly tug on the band with his teeth.

The whole time he was doing this, he could hear the Head-Captain yelling at Ukitake and Unohana.

After another sharp tug, he felt the band snap. He felt very light headed as oxygen rushed through his lungs, along with his reiatsu spreading throughout his body once again. Suddenly the Head-Captains reiatsu didn't feel as oppressive as before and Shunsui's body didn't feel as heavy. He managed to weakly roll himself onto his back and draw in deep ragged lungfuls of air.

The feeling began to return to his body and he flexed his fingers. Opening his eyes again he glanced up to see the blurry outlines of his two friends standing either side of him. His fingers brushed against something and he instinctively latched onto it. From the feel of it, he was sure his left hand was gripping Ukitake's foot and his right hand was gripping Unohana's foot too. He closed his eyes again as he concentrated on breathing properly and centring himself. He felt his fingertips tingling and then a gentle rush of reiatsu ran up his left arm from where Ukitake was discreetly lending him some power. Then he felt a calming brush of reiatsu from Unohana run through his right hand and envelope him too. Which he was very grateful for.

It also appeared as though the Head-Captain had finished yelling at them, for now.

A heavy silence had descended over the room. The only sound that could be heard was Shunsui's breathing, that was slowly evening out. He glanced up at his two friends, from his vantage point on the floor he could clearly see both of their expressions. Ukitake was looking very tense and a bit on the pale side. His hair during the short time they'd been in the Head-Captains office, had darkened considerably and was now just a shade lighter then jet black. The dark strands were sticking to his sweaty forehead. Unohana on the other hand appeared her usual calm self, however Shunsui could see the faint trace of a frown on her face. If her eyes were open, Shunsui guessed she would've been glaring at the Head-Captain. Shunsui knew Unohana hated it when someone tried to prevent her from helping someone in need.

Shunsui heard the Head-Captains footfalls, which were punctuated by the thud of his wooden staff, as the old man crossed the office to stand a few metres before them. Yamamoto paused and brought his staff down to the floor with a particularly loud thud, which Shunsui knew was only mere inches away from his head.

In a much quieter and calmer voice, but by no means less dangerous, the Head-captain simply said, "Get up Shunsui."

Despite his body feeling weak and his limbs feeling like jelly, he managed to slowly sit himself up. He took a few breaths while he contemplated whether or not he could drag himself to his feet. He sensed movement and glanced up to see Ukitake holding out an hand. Shunsui reached out and grasped the hand and Ukitake promptly hoisted him off the floor.

Shunsui wrapped an arm around Ukitake's shoulders and leaned heavily into him, he still wasn't convince that his legs wouldn't give out on him.

The Head-Captains gaze landed on Ukitake, his scrutinizing eyes taking in every single detail, including the black hair, "Your energy has grown Juushiro. You seem much healthier too, if the hair is any indication," the Head-Captain commented before looking away and levelling his heavy gaze on Unohana, "Is this your doing Retsu?"

"No Head-Captain," Unohana answered in an even tone, "We don't fully know what's caused this sudden change in Juushiro's health as of yet. We're still looking into it."

Yamamoto turned his back on them, "I see," he then slammed his staff down and spun back around to face them, "So then, that explains WHY you and Juushiro disobeyed my direct orders. You were more concerned about yourselves, rather then the fact that Shunsui," he lifted his walking stick and jabbed it towards Shunsui, "Was in way over his head. I specifically left the matter in your capable hands, to be dealt with discreetly. Do either of you care to explain to me just how you managed to fail miserably on both accounts!"

"Yama-jii," Shunsui cut in, sparing Ukitake and Unohana from having to answer for him. It was his choice alone not to confide in his best friend when Nanao had first attacked him, "It was my decision not to confide in them."

"QUIET SHUNSUI! I WASN'T ASKING YOU THE QUESTION," Yamamoto bellowed back at him. "Juushiro."

"Yes Head-Captain?"

Yamamoto gritted his teeth as though he was restraining himself from reaching out to strangle Ukitake, "Your best friend and brother needed you, but you've failed him. In my eyes that is unforgivable," he said in a quiet voice, "Get out."

"Sir?" Ukitake asked in disbelief at the Head-Captains words.

"Get out!" Yamamoto repeated.

Ukitake slowly disentangled himself from Shunsui, "I'm sorry Shunsui, I was torn between sticking my nose in and respecting your priva-"

"GET OUT!" Yamamoto roared finally losing his patience.

Once Ukitake had beaten a hasty retreat and the office door had clicked shut again, Yamamoto then returned his attention back to Unohana, "Retsu."

"Yes Head-Captain?"

"I want a full report on Nanao Ise's condition. And I mean a full report. Leave nothing out," Yamamoto ordered in a dangerously clipped voice.

Shunsui's eyes widened in panic. This was not the way he wanted things to go.

Unohana gave him a brief apologetic look before taking a small breath and launching into a full, detailed and very truthful account of what'd happened. As each sentence passed her lips, Shunsui couldn't help but cringe in shame and embarrassment. It'd been bad enough living through it, but to hear it coming from someone else and being laid out bare before him. He wanted nothing more then to be swallowed up by a large hole. This was the one thing he'd been trying to avoid all along, having to face Yamamoto and have the old man find out what had been going on. He'd been hoping like hell that they could've found a solution for Nanao well before it'd even become a problem.

As Unohana continued on, Shunsui noticed that Yamamoto's grip on his staff kept getting tighter and tighter, while the rest of his body grew impossibly still. Yes, the old man was pissed off all right. Shunsui slid his eyes closed and mentally tried to prepare himself for the angry outburst he knew was coming his way.

"We now have her stabilised in the Fourth. Its going to take some time to return her to full health," Unohana concluded.

"I see, so you're saying that Miss Ise has had nothing short of a nervous breakdown," Yamamoto cracked an eye open and glanced at Unohana, who nodded her confirmation, "Very interesting about her unstable reiatsu. I assume you already know what's caused it to become unbalanced and unstable," the Head-Captain paused again and waited for Unohana's confirmation.

"Yes I do Head-Captain."

Shunsui didn't need to open his eyes to know that Unohana's gaze was on him. He gave her the barest of nods, letting her know it was okay.

"Well?" The Head-Captain barked after several long seconds of silence had stretched on.

"Nanao Ise," Unohana only hesitated slightly, "Is pregnant."

Shunsui wrenched his eyes open when he heard a loud crack which was followed by a thud. Glancing between Yamamoto and Unohana, he saw that the Head-Captains tightened grip on the wooden staff had finally caused it to break and the old man's revealed sword had fallen to the floor with a thud. The wooden handle had been crushed between his fingers.

"If that is all Retsu," Yamamoto growled out between clenched teeth.

"Yes sir, I have nothing more to add."

"THEN GET OUT!" The Head-Captain bellowed.

Just like Toushiro and Ukitake had before her, Unohana also hurried over to the door and made her escape. Leaving Shunsui to face Yamamoto's wrath, alone.

* * *

><p>Dropping out of shunpo, Rangiku touched down in the Fourth Divisions main courtyard and began hurrying over to the entrance. She glanced down at Kotaro who was clutched in her arms, appearing quite calm and relaxed. The white towel that Toushiro had wrapped around his little hand to help stem the bleeding was now completely red and soaked through with blood.<p>

The whole way to the Fourth Kotaro had insisted that he felt fine and that it didn't hurt, but Rangiku knew better. It hurt like hell. She knew how deep the knife had sliced into her. It still made her feel a little queasy to think about it. But the thing that was making her feel even more sick, was the fact that now Kotaro was having to experience it.

She hadn't given it any thought as to how her injury had suddenly been healed and how it just happened to show up on Kotaro. She simply grabbed him and hurried over to the Fourth before he could bleed to death.

"Don't worry sweetie, we're here now," Rangiku tried to soothe Kotaro, "We'll get it sorted out for you and make the nasty pain go away."

"But Mummy I feel fine," Kotaro piped up with a small confused frown on his face.

Rangiku burst through the doors into the main entrance and scanned her eyes around for the nearest medic.

"Rangiku will you slow down a minute," Toushiro scowled when he appeared by her side a second later.

"My baby is hurting!" Rangiku shot back at him, "He needs help!"

"Yes but acting like a crazy woman isn't going to help," Toushiro sighed in exasperation, "Just calm down and have a minute."

"No!" Rangiku rounded on Toushiro, "He needs seeing to right now!"

"Will you calm yourself," Toushiro hissed back between clenched teeth, "You're making a scene."

"Mummy," Kotaro spoke up after glancing between his parents, "It doesn't hurt now I promise."

"Oh my god," Rangiku glanced down at Kotaro, "He's lost the feeling in his hand."

"Rangiku please," Toushiro cut in impatiently, "You're acting all irrational," he reached over and plucked Kotaro out of her arms, "Can you feel your fingers little man?"

"Yes Daddy," Kotaro held up his bloody, towel wrapped hand, "I'm wiggling them too."

"Are you sure there's no pain little man?"

"Positive!" Kotaro grinned back at Toushiro.

"How can he not be in pain?" Rangiku asked as she clutched the hand she'd sliced, close to her chest, "It freaking hurt like hell."

"It is strange," Toushiro admitted and reached for her with his spare hand and gave her hand a little squeeze.

"Excuse me, Captain Hitsugaya, Lieutenant Hitsugaya." They both turned at the same time to see a low ranked member of the Forth Division standing behind them, "Do you require any help?" She asked helpfully.

"Yes we do need some help!" Rangiku rushed forward towards the young girl, "My little baby is bleeding to death!"

"He's not bleeding to death," Toushiro quirked an eyebrow at Rangiku's statement, "But his hand's been sliced open."

"I see and how did he slice his hand open?" The girl asked eyeing the bloody towel.

"Err.." They both replied together.

"With a knife," Toushiro answered a couple of seconds later, ignoring the young medics brief look of disapproval.

Realising how bad it sounded, and as though they allowed their son to play with knives, Rangiku quickly recovered by adding, "It wasn't Kotaro who cut himself, it was me."

Toushiro scowled, Rangiku's comment sounded so wrong to him, "She didn't cut my son, she cut herself first."

Rangiku cringed, that made it sound like she had emotional issues or something, "I didn't intentionally cut myself. It was an accident. The knife slipped."

"So, um.." The medic faltered slightly, "Who exactly is hurt here?"

Kotaro then decided to add his two cent, "Mummy, I already said it doesn't hurt."

"Can you please just check my son over?" Rangiku asked growing irritated.

"Maybe if you could explain the situation to me," The young medic asked as she glanced between the Tenth Division leaders as though they were crazy.

"Look I know the situation seems quite confusing," Toushiro said to the medic. Just like Rangiku he was beginning to lose his patience, "And its really hard to explain." He glanced down at Kotaro, he knew without a doubt that this had everything to do with his sons emerging power. He knew Unohana would think the same thing too. It wasn't a medic they needed to see right now, it was Unohana. Toushiro sighed, he knew it was highly likely that she was still at the First Division though, "Kotaro, are you sure you're not in any pain?" He asked as he placed his son down on the floor.

"It doesn't hurt Daddy," Kotaro confirmed for him.

"Rangiku I really do think we should wait for Unohana to return."

"Toshi," Rangiku reached down and gently lifted up Kotaro's hand, "Look at his hand, he needs it seeing to. NOW!"

"Yes but if we want to fully find out what the hell just happened, then we're going to need to leave the evidence in tact."

"He's bleeding!" Rangiku yelled back at him, "And neither of us know how long it'll take Captain Unohana to return."

"Kotaro said he's not in any pain," Toushiro pointed out, "Which leads me to believe that its actually not that serious."

They were so busy having their little dispute that neither Toushiro or Rangiku noticed one of two things happening. Firstly the medic had made a discreet escape to call for a bit of backup with dealing with the difficult patients. While secondly Kotaro had wandered away from them having spotted two new arrivals entering the Fourth.

Kotaro's face lit up with excitement when he spotted his Gran-Gran gliding through the doors with his Grandad by her side, who he hadn't seen for what felt like forever. His two Grandparents spotted him and paused as they took a double take. Grinning, Kotaro rushed forwards and threw his arms wide, "Grandad!"

Ukitake grinned back and crouched on the floor ready to scoop him into his arms, "Hello young man, I haven't seen you for awhile," he beamed as Kotaro came hurrying over.

Kotaro flung his arms around Ukitake's neck and hung on for dear life, "Where have you been Grandad, I've missed you!"

"Oh I'm sorry Kotaro, things have been a little crazy," Ukitake replied hugging him tightly.

"Kotaro," Unohana's gentle voice broke through their little reunion. Kotaro pulled away from Ukitake slightly to glance at her with a grin, "What happened to your hand sunshine?"

Kotaro detached the injured, towel wrapped hand from Ukitake's neck and waved it at Unohana, "Mummy cut herself and I gave her a hug," he grinned back pleased with himself. He then twisted in Ukitake's arms to glance back at his parents who were still arguing, completely oblivious to the arrival of Unohana and Ukitake. "Mummy and Daddy are still shouting at each other though," he added with a small shrug.

There was an increase in noise as a small team of division members suddenly came bustling through a set of double doors, being led by the young medic. All of them were shooting nervous glances at the Hitsugaya's when they realised the two were having an intense argument. Neither one of them wanted to be the one to break it up.

Unohana sighed softly, "I've only been away for a couple of hours." She then stepped forward and with a gentle clearing of her throat her Division members froze, gave her a small bow, and then disappeared back through the double doors. Toushiro and Rangiku however, kept on arguing completely oblivious.

"Huh oh, Mummy and Daddy are in trouble now," Kotaro quietly whispered to Ukitake.

Ukitake grinned and whispered back, "If there's one thing I've learned over the years Kotaro, its to never upset Retsu. The second being, never to disrupt the peace and order in the Fourth. Do either one of those things and you've had it."

"I'll be sure to remember that Grandad."

Identical grins spread across their faces as they both watched in amusement as Unohana quietly reprimanded the two bickering Squad Ten leaders.

"Come on young man," Ukitake started to walk towards Unohana, Toushiro and Rangiku, "I think its safe now."

* * *

><p>It'd taken quite some time for Rangiku to start calming down. She'd been quite frantic when she'd been trying to explain what'd happened to Unohana. After Unohana had given Rangiku's hand a thorough examination, the kind medic had asked her to wait outside while she then proceeded to check out Kotaro's wound. Toushiro oddly enough had been allowed to stay with Kotaro.<p>

Rangiku assumed that Unohana wanted to discuss some Captain related stuff with him. Although she really wanted to be with Kotaro, she knew Unohana had been right. She really did need a few minutes to calm down and compose herself.

Fortunately Ukitake had been waiting outside the examination room for them and had made the suggestion to go for a walk. So they'd walked around the grounds of the Fourth Division, in relative silence. Rangiku had the impression that Ukitake had a lot on his mind. She was pretty sure that he was worried about Shunsui and Nanao. They all were.

"Captain Ukitake," she glanced at the kind Captain, who seemed to be staring off into space. They'd been walking for a long time and they'd decided to stop and have a rest on one of the benches before heading back, "Are you okay?"

Ukitake snapped out of his daze and gave her one of his dazzling smiles, "I'm sorry Rangiku, I'm not being very good company at the moment am I?"

"Its okay, I think we both have a lot on our minds tonight," Rangiku glanced up at the clear star filled sky, and shivered.

"Are you cold?" Ukitake asked, only just realising that it'd dropped dark.

"I guess I am a little bit."

"Come on," Ukitake got to his feet and held his hand out to her, "Lets head back."

They began winding their way back through the many pathways of the Fourths gardens. When they'd been walking for several minutes in silence, Ukitake cleared his throat and asked, "What's on your mind Rangiku?"

Rangiku shook her head an sighed, "It just feels like today has been one long horrible day. When will it end?"

"Yes its been pretty difficult today," Ukitake agreed, "Everything that we wanted to avoid happening, has happened."

Rangiku paused in her tracks, "Captain Ukitake, what do you suppose will happen to Shun-kun and Nanao?"

"I don't know Rangiku," Ukitake had a pained expression on his face, "The Head-Captain... I don't think I've ever seen him that angry before. Retsu and I tried to do what we could, unfortunately there was nothing we could do. At the end of the day, its all down to whether or not Shunsui can reason with the Head-Captain."

"Everything is so messed up," Rangiku huffed as she began walking again, "Finding out you're going to have a child is supposed to be one of the happiest moments of your life. We should be celebrating, but instead.."

"We're all on edge and worrying about the fate of our dearest friends," Ukitake finished for her.

Rangiku nodded sadly, "Captain Ukitake."

"Yes Rangiku?"

"Do you think we could call in on Nanao on the way back?" Rangiku didn't want to add - just in case she didn't get to see her again.

Ukitake seemed to understand and agreed, "I would like to see her too, I don't think Retsu will mind too much."

They quickened their pace and in no time the Fourths main entrance came back into view. Rangiku hurried up the steps with Ukitake following close behind her, and they headed down the corridor that would lead them to where Nanao was.

"Rangiku, if you don't mind me asking," Ukitake spoke up as they rounded a corner, "What exactly happened to Kotaro?"

"It all happened so fast," Rangiku began, "We were making sandwiches and the knife I was using to cut up some salad slipped," she held up her hand and traced where the knife had sliced into her palm, "It was a very deep slice. It hurt like hell and the blood was gushing from it. Its bit of a blur but while Toushiro went to grab a towel, I specifically remember Kotaro wrapping his arms around my waist and hugging me."

"Then what happened?" Ukitake asked genuinely intrigued.

"I really don't know," Rangiku frowned as she tried to recall exactly what had happened, "I just remember feeling a bit strange. I was already feeling quite hot and queasy. Then suddenly my whole body felt all cool and tingly."

Ukitake came to an abrupt stop and raised a single eyebrow at Rangiku's explanation.

Rangiku saw this and paused too as she glanced back at him, "What is it?"

Ukitake closed the distance between them and rested his hands on her shoulders, "Did it feel... soothing?"

Rangiku's eyes went wide. That was exactly how it'd felt, but how could Ukitake have possibly known that? "Yes.. but wait... Why is it, that you know that?"

"Because I think I may have experienced a similar thing," Ukitake released her shoulders and turned away from her, "I just didn't realise it at the time."

"Realise what?" Rangiku asked stepping around him so she could see his face, "What happened?"

"Rangiku I'm so sorry. I had no idea at the time that it could've been Kotaro," Ukitake slapped his palm against his forehead, "Why didn't I make the connection sooner?"

"Damn it, will you just tell me already!" Rangiku snapped back feeling annoyed.

"When I was looking after Kotaro for you, I remember having a coughing fit," Ukitake began pacing back and forth, "I was feeling pretty awful afterwards, very hot and uncomfortable."

Rangiku met his eye and nodded, allowing him to continue.

"I remember clearly. Kotaro had been taking a nap and my coughing had woken him up. He hurried over to me and I could tell he was feeling quite concerned and worried. So I sat him on my knee and told him there was nothing to worry about. Then he hugged me."

"Then what happened?" Rangiku prompted with a serious look on her face.

Ukitake stared back at her for several seconds before saying, "The exact same thing that happened to you, happened to me too. I Felt hot, then this cool, soothing sensation rushed through my body. I didn't think much of it at the time."

"When exactly did this happen?"

"It was the same day you and Toushiro arrived home from the World of the Living. Late afternoon, early evening to be precise. The same evening Kotaro came down ill."

"Have you told Captain Unohana or Toshi this?"

"No, its literally just come back to me. When you were describing your own experience, it triggered a memory. You see that night was the same night I'd rushed over to the Eighth when Shunsui and Nanao were having problems. It kinda pushed everything else to the back of my mind."

"We have to tell them," Rangiku sighed tiredly, "There's just no way it can be a coincidence."

"I don't believe so either Rangiku."

"Come on we have to tell them," Rangiku caught Ukitake's wrist and began marching back the way she came.

"Wait Rangiku," Ukitake freed his wrist and summoned a hell butterfly, "Lets just send them a message. I really am quite anxious to see Nanao. Who knows what the Head-Captain may decide and how soon he'll act on his decision."

Rangiku stopped and returned to Ukitake, "Okay lets do that."

As they continued walking towards Nanao's room, Ukitake relayed the message to Toushiro and Unohana. Just as they rounded the final corner, the butterfly detached itself from Ukitake's finger and began fluttering the opposite way down the corridor.

Reaching Nanao's door, Rangiku knocked lightly and waited for a reply. Hearing nothing she knocked again and called, "Nanao its Rangiku and Captain Ukitake, can we come in?" When she received no reply she glanced at Ukitake, "Do you think she could be asleep?"

"Its possible," Ukitake tapped on the door lightly before gently pushing it open. He stepped to one side and indicated for Rangiku to go in first. Rangiku stepped inside and Ukitake followed her.

They both came to an abrupt halt and momentarily froze.

Then their eyes began to frantically scan the room before landing back on the empty bed.

Nanao was gone.


	31. Chapter 31

Hello Back already with the next Chapter, didn't I say my muse was back in full force? :D Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed the last chapter. You guys rock! Happy Reading ^_^

* * *

><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 31<p>

"Nanao!... NANAO!" Rangiku screamed sounding very panicked. She rounded on Ukitake, "Where is she? What's happened to her!" She demanded loudly.

"Rangiku, calm down a minute and let me think," Ukitake replied as his eyes continued to scan the room. He then stepped over to the bed and picked up a discarded I.V line off the bed. Glancing at the end he saw that the smearing of blood on the end was still wet, "She's not been gone long."

"How do you know that?"

Ukitake held up the line for Rangiku, "The blood is still wet. By the looks of it, it was removed hastily."

Rangiku frowned, "Okay, second question. Did somebody remove it, or is it possible Nanao removed it herself?"

"That I don't know, but judging by the sheets and the fact that everything else seems to be in place. There was obviously no struggle."

"That's not very comforting. For all we know someone could've abducted her whilst she was still unconscious," Rangiku glanced at the machine that'd been keeping track of Nanao's heart rate and spiritual pressure. On the screen she could see that both readings had flat lined, yet oddly enough, "Captain Ukitake!"

"What is it Rangiku?" He asked as he examined the windows which he found to be locked.

"Nanao was hooked up to the machine," Rangiku pointed out, "If the line was suddenly removed, wouldn't the alarm have been sounded?"

"Yes unless the alarm had been switched off first," catching onto Rangiku's meaning Ukitake stepped over to the bed and examined the machine. After a thorough examination Ukitake straightened up, "I think its safe to say, that it was Nanao who unhooked herself from the machine."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. There's a smearing of wet blood on the alarm switch too," Ukitake glanced at Rangiku, "I think its highly likely that Nanao removed the I.V line, it always causes bleeding when removed. Then she must have switched the alarm off, before finally removing the sticky pads," Ukitake pointed to several small round pads which were dangling from the machine by thin wires, "If the pads had been removed first, the alarm would have sounded, which would have alerted somebody."

"Unless somebody else removed them for her," Rangiku surmised.

Ukitake shook his head, "I assure you Rangiku, nobody has abducted Nanao. Can you think of anyone who would?"

"What if the First issued orders to take Nanao in whilst you were all at the Head-Captains office?"

"Its illegal to remove someone from the Fourth by force if they are incapacitated," Ukitake reminded Rangiku, "Do you have any more theories you'd like me to dispel or would you like to help me search for Nanao before the Head-Captain becomes aware of the situation?"

Rangiku snapped into action, "You're right! We need to find her fast. I don't suppose you have any theories as to where she's gone?"

"I think that should be fairly obvious," Ukitake replied as he headed for the door.

"She's looking for Shunsui?"

"I cant think of any other reason why she would just up and leave like that," Ukitake began a quick pace down the corridor which Rangiku matched, "Especially in her condition."

"Maybe we should check Shunsui's room first," Rangiku suggested, "Its probably the first place she would look."

"I just hope she hasn't gone far," Ukitake commented as he swept around a corner, "Without her reiatsu to locate her, its going to take a lot of time searching for her in the traditional way."

"But in her current condition," Rangiku began.

"I cant see her being able to get very far," Ukitake finished for her.

"We'll find her," Rangiku felt confident about it.

In no time they were nearing the room that was reserved for the Eighths Captain. As they drew closer they both noticed at the same time that the door was slightly ajar. Pushing it open they glanced around the dark room only to feel disappointed when they saw that the room was vacant.

"She's not here," Ukitake sighed.

"No but she was," Rangiku perked up, "Look."

Ukitake glanced to where Rangiku was pointing and saw a dark stain on the white covers of the bed. He flicked the light on and stepped nearer for a closer look.

More blood.

Ukitake knew Rangiku was right in her assessment. Because when he'd left the room earlier with Shunsui, he knew the sheets had been pristine white, "Okay so we definitely know she's looking for Shunsui."

"Question is," Rangiku turned to Ukitake with a worried look on her face, "Where is she now?"

"And where is she headed?" Ukitake added, "I know her reiatsu levels have been depleted, but would that prevent her from being able to sense anyone else's spiritual pressure?"

"I could only sense Toushiro when I was pregnant," Rangiku reminded him.

"If she's thinking rationally, then she would probably realise that Shunsui's gone to the First to help attempt to smooth things over. But if she's woken up in a blind panic then its possible she isn't thinking straight and could possibly just run to the place where she feels the safest," Ukitake screwed his eyes shut in concentration.

"She's either gone to the First after Shunsui, or she's gone home to the Eighth. If its the latter then we should check Shunsui's home, or the office," Rangiku suggested eagerly.

"Right we'll check there first," Ukitake started backing out of the room, "We need to find her fast and get her back here."

"What if she isn't at the Eighth, what will we do then?"

Ukitake paused, "Then we'll have to split up and search a wider area."

Rangiku followed Ukitake out of the room as he hurried for the nearest exit, "Shouldn't we go and tell Toshi and Captain Unohana first?"

"No time, we need to find her fast. If the Head-Captain realises she's not in the Fourth, then he will send someone to bring her in."

"By that I hope you don't mean, 'Arrest and Detain' in a cell," Rangiku scowled.

"I don't want that the happen either Rangiku."

"She cant have gone far," Rangiku paused in her running to stop herself from slamming into Ukitake's back, who'd come to an abrupt halt in the middle of the Fourths main courtyard, "If she's hardly got any spiritual pressure then I doubt she can even shunpo."

"You're right," Ukitake agreed, "Which means we need to split up.

"Would it be easier to spot her from the roofs?" Rangiku glanced around at the many dark pathways and streets leading off to all areas of the Seireitei, "Might help if we have a higher vantage point."

"Take the rooftops Rangiku," Ukitake started heading over to the walkway which generally lead the way to the Eighth, "I'll go on foot and take the main walkways to the Eighth."

Rangiku nodded, "Okay, I'll send a blast of pressure your way if I spot her," she then flashed away towards the nearest rooftop, while Ukitake began walking.

* * *

><p>"Fascinating... This is incredibly, fascinating."<p>

Toushiro folded his arms across his chest and leaned back against the wall. Kotaro was sitting on the examination bed swinging his legs back and forth as Unohana gave him a thorough check over.

"Found something interesting?" Toushiro asked when he saw Unohana jot down a few notes in a rushed manner.

"Toushiro its incredible," Unohana smiled back at him, "At such a young age too." Unohana must have seen his baffled expression because she then motioned him over, "Let me show you something."

Toushiro unfolded his arms and pushed himself away from the wall and stepped over to Unohana. He had to admit, he was rather curious himself.

"Take a look at the hand that Kotaro had..." Unohana paused, technically Kotaro hadn't cut himself. Rangiku had. It'd just happened to transfer to Kotaro, "Cut."

Toushiro reached for Kotaro's injured hand and turned it over so he could see. His eyes went wide then darted to Unohana's face, before returning back to Kotaro's hand, "Its completely healed."

"Yes it has," Unohana nodded.

"It's not even left a scar," Toushiro knew that a cut that deep would have left at least some scarring.

"No it hasn't."

"Did you..?" Toushiro trailed off.

"No I didn't heal him Toushiro," Unohana placed her pen down and ruffled Kotaro's hair, "It seems that in the time between Kotaro receiving the injury and bringing him here, his body's healed itself."

"He has the ability of accelerated regeneration?" Toushiro asked astounded.

"That's partly it, but the fact that the injury was originally Rangiku's, then showed up on Kotaro. That would suggest that he somehow absorbed the injury from Rangiku. It could be some type of healing ability," Unohana glanced at Kotaro with pride in her eyes, "Toushiro with your consent, I'd like to run a full diagnostic on Kotaro."

"I was hoping that you would," Toushiro admitted, "When I'd arrived at the Tenth to sort him out, he'd created a few tornadoes. I knew right then that he was packing some serious power."

"Oh! Tornadoes are fun!" Kotaro perked up with a grin, "Watch this Gran-Gran!"

Kotaro closed his eyes and clenched his fists tightly. His face was screwed up with concentration and rapidly turning red from the effort of trying to produce a tornado.

"Kotaro don't!" Toushiro yelled.

Kotaro peeked an eye open and seemed a little disappointed that nothing had happened, "Daddy I couldn't make one this time!"

"Good," Toushiro folded his arms across his chest and sighed, "Kotaro you must understand that you cant just create tornadoes whenever you please. Its a huge responsibility having spiritual pressure, and you must learn what constitutes as appropriate behaviour and irresponsible behaviour."

"Your fathers right sunshine," Unohana tilted Kotaro's chin up so she could look him in the eye, "Reckless use of ones spiritual pressure carries certain consequences."

Kotaro stared back at them sadly, "I didn't know."

"I know Kotaro," Unohana replied gently, "But don't worry, you'll be taught everything you need to know. Your father will make sure of that."

"Really Daddy?" Kotaro asked uncertainly.

"Of course," Toushiro assured him, "I've already started to teach you a few things."

"Oh yeah, the sword kata," Kotaro recalled, "And how to breathe," he added a little sarcastically.

"I know it doesn't seem much little man," Toushiro replied in a slightly stern voice, "But everyone needs to start with the basics. They are the building blocks for everything else that you will be taught."

Unohana cleared her throat and Toushiro returned his attention to her, "So if you will allow it Toushiro, I would like to perform the full spectrum of reiatsu tests and spiritual pressure compositions on Kotaro. That way I will be able to understand the full extent of his newly emerged powers. Obviously I wouldn't be able to tell you the nature of his Zanpakuto spirit, but the spiritual pressure composition tests would be able to tell you whether Kotaro's power will lean more towards swordsmanship, hand to hand, kido, healing or brute strength. Then the reiatsu spectrum test will give us an indication as to how rapidly we can expect his powers to grow and give us an estimation as to where it'll level out. It can even predict if Kotaro's power could potentially reach Captain level."

Toushiro gave her a small nod, "I was discussing this with Rangiku, we both agreed that we'd like you to go ahead with the tests."

"Very well Toushiro, I will arrange to have the tests carried out as soon as possible," Unohana stepped away and picked up her clipboard, "I'll just have a look to see where I can squeeze them in. They're not particularly long tests, but I would like to leave additional time to look over the results. That way I can tell you there and then what they show up."

"Thank you, that would be great."

"Don't mention it Toushiro," Unohana smiled fondly at Kotaro and stroked his hair, "Nothings too much trouble where Kotaro is concerned," she noticed that Kotaro seemed to be fascinated by something. Following his gaze she noticed a small shadow fluttering under the gap at the bottom of the door, "Now what's that?" She wondered aloud.

Seeing where they were looking, Toushiro stepped over to the door and opened it a crack. The fluttering shadow turned out to be a hell butterfly. As soon as it sensed an opening in the door, it fluttered into the air and through the gap in the door heading for Unohana.

"What do we have here then," she held out a slender finger and the butterfly perched itself on the extended digit. After it'd relayed its message, it took flight again and left, "Hmm, that was from Juushiro."

"Is everything okay?" Toushiro asked remembering that Rangiku had gone with Ukitake for a walk around the grounds.

"Juushiro and Rangiku have pieced together some new information," Unohana informed him.

"Oh? What is it?"

"Its concerning Kotaro," Unohana frowned and then stepped over to Kotaro who was gazing back at her innocently, "Toushiro if you don't mind, can I do those tests right now?"

"This new information is pretty serious, isn't it?" Toushiro asked as he instinctively drew closer to Kotaro.

"Its both concerning and fascinating at the same time," Unohana admitted in her gentle tone, "But I also believe this information is the puzzle piece we've been looking for."

Toushiro glanced at Kotaro who seemed absorbed in monitoring his heartbeat, then to Unohana whose face was so full of concern for her grandson, "I don't mind, lets do it."

* * *

><p>So far Ukitake hadn't had any luck in locating Nanao. He'd been walking for a good hour and had found nothing to suggest that she'd been here. He'd kept tabs on Rangiku's location and knew that she'd reached the Eighth already and was most likely checking Shunsui's place and the office. They had been the most obvious starting points, yet his gut instinct was telling him that she wouldn't be there.<p>

He came to an abrupt halt when realisation dawned on him. Of course Nanao wouldn't go to the Eighth looking for Shunsui. He could've slapped himself at the obviousness of the situation. If Nanao was in the Fourth, Shunsui would always be there, close by, without fail. He wouldn't be lazing about at home when he knew his Nanao-chan was either sick or injured enough to warrant going to the Fourth. He would be by her side whether she wanted him there or not. This was something Nanao also knew.

So if Nanao had happened to have woken up in a bit of a panic then realised Shunsui wasn't there, naturally she would've gone looking for him. Which was obvious by the fact that she'd been to his room.

"Come on think..." Ukitake growled to himself. Who knew Shunsui's habits better then himself and Nanao. If Nanao was in the Fourth and Shunsui wasn't by her bedside, or if he was in the Fourth and Shunsui had popped out. Where did he usually go?

Ukitake snapped his head up and began heading back the way he came. Of course, Shunsui would generally find a nice secluded spot outside in the Fourths gardens. So he could get the fresh air he craved, the solitude he needed to dwell on the situation, but to also be close by the Fourth just in case anything happened. Ukitake knew he favoured a particular spot that had the most beautiful cherry blossom tree in the spring, which sat next to a small pond. The amount of times he'd found Shunsui there when Nanao had been hospitalized. He knew Nanao would know of this particular spot too, especially with the amount of times he himself had spent in the Fourth. Nanao was exceptionally good at finding all of Shunsui's hidey holes. Of course she wouldn't go to back to the Eighth, she knew Shunsui wouldn't be there. He would be in his spot.

"Damn it I should have known!"

Ukitake broke into a run, then jumped straight into shunpo. He needed to get to Nanao fast. He knew she would be upset when she realised that Shunsui wasn't there. Then there was the fact that it was such a cold night and Nanao was in a delicate state of health.

As he hurried back to the Fourth he quickly checked on Rangiku's whereabouts, noticing that she had sensed his sudden change in direction and was quickly hurrying back to him.

He was soon touching down in the Fourths grounds. He took a few seconds to get his bearings, then turning on the spot he started heading deeper in the gardens. He heard a swish and a few hurried steps, then Rangiku fell into step beside him, "Captain Ukitake."

"I know where she'll be," was Ukitake's way of acknowledging her arrival, "I should have known sooner really."

"Where?" Rangiku asked as she hurried to keep up with him.

"Its not far Rangiku," Ukitake pointed to a small clump of trees several metres away, "Just over there."

"Why would she come out here though?"

"Because that clump of trees happens to be one of Shunsui's quiet spots," Ukitake informed kindly, "Its where he goes if ever Nanao or myself happens to be in the Fourth. Its far enough away to get some peace and quiet, but.."

"Close enough to the Fourth if needed?" Rangiku guessed.

"Yes," Ukitake left the paved path and started crossing over a small patch of well maintained grass, "I expect when Nanao realised Shunsui wasn't in the Fourth, she probably thought he'd be here instead."

They fell silent as they hurried over to the clump of trees, Ukitake heard the gentle trickling of a stream and knew they were nearing the small pond. Soon enough they were pushing their way through the trees thick overhanging branches and quite suddenly they were stepping out into a small clearing. The full moon above them in the sky shone down through the gaps in the trees, bathing the small clearing in ghostly moonlight which reflected eerily off the ponds surface. Everything else appeared dark and shadowy apart from the prone, slender form of Nanao, whose pale body and white infirmary robe were being illuminated by the moons pale beams.

Rangiku gasped and rushed forward, "Nanao!"

Ukitake shunpoed the short distance and dropped down to his knees beside her. He gently placed his hand on her shoulder and gently rolled her off her side and onto her back, "Nanao can you hear me?" He asked in a soft tone, at first glance she appeared to be unconscious. He brushed her hair out of her face and was surprised to see her eyes flutter open. He could tell from the dried tear tracks staining her cheeks that she'd been crying, a lot.

A second later Rangiku also dropped down to her knees on Nanao's other side, "Is she okay?"

"Shunsui.." Nanao whispered quietly.

"No Nanao," Ukitake threaded his arms under her back and pulled her into a sitting position, he was shocked by how cold she felt to his touch. He then repositioned himself so he was kneeling behind her and then gently allowed her to flop back so her back was leaning into his chest, "Its Juushiro, and Rangiku," he then wrapped his arms around her, sharing his warmth with her.

Rangiku leant closer to Nanao and cupped her cheeks with her hands, "Nanao what are you doing all the way out here? You're freezing cold."

It was quite common knowledge just how thin the infirmary robes were, something both Ukitake and Rangiku knew from personal experience, "Rangiku can you support her for a minute please."

"Sure," Rangiku removed her hands from Nanao's cheeks and wrapped them around her shoulders while Ukitake shrugged out of his haori.

He then draped his haori around Nanao's shoulders like a blanket. The last thing either of them wanted was for Nanao to catch hypothermia. She'd been through the mill enough already as it is, they didn't want to add more to the long list of health problems. Nanao was generally a very slender woman and with her recent emaciated appearance, Ukitake's haori practically dwarfed her body.

"Captain Ukitake," Nanao's voice was quiet and weak.

In one smooth and easy motion, Ukitake scooped Nanao up into his arms and hoisted her gently off the floor, while at the same time he lifted himself back to his feet.

Startled by his sudden movements, Rangiku sprang back to her feet too and followed him as he exited from the small clearing. She suspected that he wanted to get Nanao back to the Fourth as soon as possible. So it came as bit of a surprise to her that instead of heading back the way they came, Ukitake actually diverted off and headed for a nearby bench.

Reaching the bench Ukitake lowered Nanao onto it and crouched down beside her, "Nanao before I take you back to the Fourth, will you talk to me?" He asked as he stroked her hair. It was very strange for him to see Nanao with her hair down and without her glasses on.

Nanao sniffed back the tears that were threatening to spill forth and gave him a little nod. He gave her a reassuring smile in return before asking, "You were looking for Shunsui, am I correct?"

"Yes," Nanao let out a shaky breath.

"But he wasn't in his room so you came looking for him here." It was a rhetorical question but Nanao still answered it by giving him another little nod. "Nanao why did you do that?"

Ukitake reached for Nanao's burnt and bandaged hand and examined the place where she'd pulled out the I.V line. It looked a mess. Flicking his wrist Ukitake produced a mild healing kido, it was nowhere near as good as Unohana's but it was enough to help stem the bleeding.

Nanao was quiet for a very long time, when Ukitake glanced at her again, he saw a lone tear trailing down her cheek, "I needed him," she replied quietly, "I needed him, but I couldn't sense him anywhere."

"Its okay Nanao," Ukitake replied sympathetically.

"I couldn't sense anyone," Nanao's chest hitched as a sob tried to escape, "I had to find him," Nanao weakly pulled herself up so she was sitting upright, however her head started to spin and she could feel herself toppling forward.

Fortunately Ukitake had anticipated her reaction and had already caught her before she could fall off the bench. He pulled Nanao into his chest and held her close, while he ran a soothing hand up and down her back, "Easy there Nanao."

"Where is he?" Nanao asked barely above a whisper, "Where's Shunsui?"

"Shh its okay Nanao," Ukitake replied in a soothing voice, sensing her growing agitation, "Shunsui's fine," he could feel a wet patch forming from where Nanao's face was pressed up against his chest. All he could do, was to hold her close and wait for her to settle down.

Ukitake wasn't sure how long he'd been there holding and comforting Nanao, but a hand on his shoulder pulled him back to his senses. Craning his neck he saw Rangiku staring back at him looking very worried, "We should get her back to the Fourth Captain Ukitake."

Ukitake gave Rangiku a small nod of approval, "Yes you're right Rangiku, we should," he glanced down at Nanao and realised she had fallen asleep in his arms.

"Is she okay?" Rangiku asked as she peered over his shoulder.

"She's fallen asleep Rangiku," Ukitake adjusted his hold on Nanao and held her easily in his arms bridal style, "She's very upset and exhausted, its not been an easy day for her. Its not been easy for any of us," he commented as he started to walk back towards the Fourth.

Rangiku ran her fingers through Nanao's hair, dislodging a leaf that'd got caught amongst her dark locks "I hope she gets better soon, for Shunsui and for the baby."

"I just hope the Head-Captain doesn't punish Shunsui too severely. The Head-Captain was in a terrible mood, we all pretty much got it in the neck from him," Ukitake glanced down at Nanao, "I'm just glad we managed to keep Nanao out of the line of fire... for now. It would have been too dangerous for her to be there with us. She looks so broken and frail."

They walked the rest of the way in silence. After being out in the cold night air for so long, the heated corridors of the Fourth were a pleasure to walk through. When they rounded the final corner that lead back to Nanao's room, they paused briefly when they spotted two identical mops of unruly white hair hovering outside the door.

Sensing their arrival Toushiro turned in their direction and rose to his feet when he saw the bundle in Ukitake's arms. Kotaro also spotted them and was about to bound over to them, but was prevented from doing so by Toushiro.

Rangiku whispered to Ukitake, "If Toshi's here with Kotaro, do you think its a good bet Captain Unohana knows that Nanao went awol?"

The door to Nanao's room opened and Unohana swept out into the corridor. Unohana noticed that Toushiro was glancing down the corridor and followed his gaze.

"Nothing gets past Retsu," Ukitake mumbled back.

"Should we be worried? Its not like we were personally responsible for kidnapping her or anything," Rangiku pointed out.

They needn't have worried, Ukitake took one look at Unohana's expression as they neared Nanao's room and saw the look of relief wash over her face. "Retsu," he greeted as he came to a stop before her.

Unohana closed the distance and immediately started to check over Nanao's appearance, "Where was she?"

"We found her outside, she was looking for Shunsui," he replied simply, he would fill her in on the full story later.

"Lets get her back to bed," Unohana replied gently, "Can you bring her through please Juushiro."

As Ukitake disappeared into the room after Unohana, Kotaro came padding over to Rangiku with a big smile on his face, "Hi sweetie," Rangiku cooed as she scooped him up for a hug, "How's your hand now?"

"Its all better Mummy," he replied as he snuggled into her shoulder.

Rangiku stepped over to the seats and flopped down next to Toushiro, sighing heavily she rested her head against his shoulder, "Is this day over yet?" she moaned quietly, "Its been one awful thing after the other."

"Yes it does seem as though today's been jinxed right from the start," Toushiro agreed as he wrapped his arm around Rangiku's shoulders.

Rangiku sneaked a peek at Kotaro who seemed to have settled down and was dozing off on her shoulder, "My little baby's all tired out too. What did Unohana have to say about what happened?"

Rangiku turned back to Toushiro to see a massive, rare smile on usually serious face, "Well," he began trying to reign in his excitement for a minute while he told her, "Unohana decided it was for the best that she performed the spiritual pressure composition test on Kotaro right there and then."

Rangiku sat up a bit straighter at Toushiro's words, "What did she find out?"

"Lots!" Toushiro exclaimed in an unnaturally high voice, his eyes were sparkling with obvious pride, "We figured you and Ukitake would be visiting Nanao, so we came down here to tell you."

"Toushiro what happened?" Rangiku asked with a pout.

Toushiro shook his head, "Not yet, we must wait for Unohana and Ukitake."

"Why?"

"It will be better hearing it from Unohana," Toushiro answered quickly, "Plus I'm interested to see the look on Ukitake's face."

"Toshi what's going on? Why cant you just tell me? And what's with all the dramatics? That's not like you at all!" Rangiku hissed back at him, "Why are you acting so weird all of a sudden?"

"Because," Toushiro paused as he took in a breath, "Kotaro's done something that's nothing short of a miracle."


	32. Chapter 32

My Muse has gone into overdrive mode :D Thank you to everybody who read and reviewed the last chapter. One in particular made me smile - No I cant read Kubo-sans mind, but I do believe I have good intuition :) /blush. Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 32<p>

Toushiro startled slightly when the door to Nanao's room suddenly opened. Its not that he'd nodded off to sleep or anything, he'd just happened to have switch off for a moment.

"Toushiro?" Unohana prodded him gently.

"Unohana," he acknowledged and tried to straighten up in his seat a little more. This small task however was proving difficult. He glanced to his side to see Rangiku leaning heavily against his shoulder, clearly fast asleep. While Kotaro was using his lap as a pillow and just like his mother, was also fast asleep. Toushiro lifted his gaze up to Unohana's and grimaced at the pain in his neck. Had he been asleep too?

"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting," Unohana's apology was genuine, "Nanao woke up again and it took a little time to get her settled down. Then I had to clean and re-dress some of her wounds."

Toushiro let out a jaw-cracking yawn and rubbed at his eyes, "Don't worry about it, just as long as Nanao's okay."

Unohana smiled warmly at him, "I feel bad that you've been waiting out here all this time though Toushiro."

"Have you told Ukitake the news yet?"

"No not yet. Its been a battle trying to get Nanao to settle down again. He's been helping me," Unohana glanced over her shoulder and peered through the gap in the door. Toushiro followed her gaze and saw Ukitake sitting in the chair beside Nanao's bed, "Juushiro's going to stay with her tonight, just in case she wakes up in a panic again."

"Good idea," Toushiro agreed, he lifted a hand to his mouth to stifle another yawn.

Unohana leaned forward and rested a hand on his shoulder, "Toushiro I think you should go home," Unohana glanced at Kotaro with a small smile, "You're all tired. It's been a very long and difficult day."

"What about the news?" Toushiro asked as he threaded his fingers into Rangiku's hair.

"Take Kotaro home and see that he gets to bed," Unohana advised gently, "Then you should tell Rangiku what you've learnt. Don't worry about Juushiro, I'll break the news to him," A small amused smile broke out on Unohana's face, "Although you should be prepared for the possibility of him knocking down your door at the break of dawn."

Toushiro chuckled, "I was kind of hoping to see his reaction first hand."

"Honestly Toushiro," Unohana's face suddenly went very serious, "Even I cant predict what his reaction will be."

Toushiro tilted his head to one side, "But he will see it has a good thing though, right?"

Unohana was quiet for several seconds before she said, "I'm sure he will. He's had the awful disease for so long."

"But?" Toushiro prompted, sensing there was more to come.

"But its possible he may be upset at first by how he's finally managed to get rid of it," Unohana whispered back, "You know how much of a soft spot he has for kids. He hates to see a child suffering."

"I don't want him to feel guilty," Toushiro glanced down at Kotaro with a small proud smile on his face and ruffled his hair, "My little healer," Toushiro glanced back up at Unohana, "Will you be the one to teach him all he needs to know about healing kido?"

"I'd be honoured to," Unohana smiled back, "After he's learnt all the basics off his parents first though."

"I'm kind of glad he's going to be geared more towards healing," Toushiro admitted quietly, "Its strange though."

"What is?" Unohana asked.

"We know he's going to be packing some serious fire power. We now know he's going to be very proficient in healing, giving his ability to absorb another persons injury then to rapidly heal himself afterwards. His reiatsu has calming and soothing qualities about it. Yet when he had his tantrum earlier, he affected the wind."

"What are you trying to say Toushiro?"

"What I'm trying to say is," Toushiro paused as he thought it over, "How does all that fit together? What part of it is just his personality and what part is due to his Zanpakuto spirit? I always come across as being a bit cold. That's just my personality. When I lose my temper, the room temperature drops. That's because of my connection to Hyourimaru."

"Well in answer to that Toushiro," Unohana replied with a fond glance at Kotaro, "I would have to say that the calming and soothing effect he has is pure personality. The tornado he created during his tantrum, definitely indicates his connection to his Zanpakuto spirit. Seeing as its never happened before prior to his power emerging. As for his healing abilities, very rare. I think its highly likely that his Zanpakuto will be multi-purpose. Its one of those things that we'll just have to wait and find out about. Its just not possible to know what a persons Zanpakuto will be like, before that persons even seen it themselves."

Toushiro's eyes went wide and his whole body stiffened.

"Is something wrong Toushiro?"

In a very quiet voice he replied, "But I have seen his Zanpakuto," he glanced at Unohana and saw her disbelieving look, "I was in a coma at the time. It was quite by accident, but I know I definitely saw it. Last time I checked Hyourimaru wasn't an orange dragon."

Unohana gasped, she looked quite astonished as her hand came up to cover her mouth "Toushiro."

"What is it?" Toushiro's eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"Are you a hundred percent certain it was orange?"

"Yes," he frowned.

"And a dragon?"

"Positive," Toushiro nodded.

Unohana turned away from him and started to pace.

Toushiro quirked an eyebrow, Unohana was never known as a person who paced.

"Could it be?" She wondered aloud, "He possesses the wind element...then there's the healing. Then there's his personality...very soothing."

"Unohana?" Toushiro questioned feeling a bit baffled, "Will you tell me what it is?" He demanded in a low voice, not wanting to wake up Kotaro and Rangiku.

Unohana paused in her pacing and turned to face him, in a low voice she replied, "Toushiro, I've made it a personal mission of mine to research and study up on all the healing type Zanpakuto's. Past and present. I've even looked into all the rare and legendary ones, which may or may not even exist. You never know if any will show up at a later date."

"Oh I see," Toushiro tilted his head to one side, "Do you recall seeing something similar?" He asked, his acute brain processing the information quickly.

"Yes I believe so," Unohana closed her eyes momentarily as she thought back, "It was many many years ago. Not long after I'd left the Shinigami Academy actually. I was told that healing type Zanpakuto's are uncommon and very rare. Only a handful have ever been seen throughout the years Toushiro. I was naturally curious since I possessed one myself so that's when I started to study the subject. I came across a very old book in the great spirit library, about legendary beasts with great power."

Toushiro was watching Unohana very intently.

"A lot of the content appeared far-fetched and completely irrelevant, however.." Unohana glanced at him briefly before continuing on, "As I was about to give up on this particular book, a certain type of beast caught my interest."

"Dragons?" Toushiro prompted.

"Yes Toushiro, dragons. There were several depicted in the book, each with a different base element. Fire, water," Unohana paused and met Toushiro's eye, "Ice."

Toushiro pulled in a sharp breath, "Hyourimaru?" He asked in disbelief, he could feel Hyourimaru stirring in the back of his mind.

Unohana gave him a small nod, "Its possible, however this particular book never mentioned any of the dragons names, they were only labelled as Fire Dragon or Ice Dragon," Unohana paused as she regained her current thread, "Anyway when I was looking at them, I also specifically remember seeing an orange dragon, which was depicted in an autumnal scene with wind blowing around it. I half expected it being called a Wind Dragon, however it'd been given the label as 'The Healing Breeze Dragon,' the gentlest one out of the lot."

Toushiro's eyes were as wide as saucers. No way, he thought in his mind. There was just no way. It was too much of a coincidence. 'Hyourimaru..'

'Master.'

'Is it possible?'

'Do you really need me to answer that? Everything fits, doesn't it?' Hyourimaru rumbled before retreating into the back of his mind.

He felt a hand land on his shoulder and his focus jerked back to Unohana, "Toushiro you've gone awfully pale."

He didn't answer right away, he was still in a slight state of shock.

"Toushiro," Unohana called a bit louder, "I really do think you should go home now, its getting late. Don't exhaust yourself now."

"Right," Toushiro quietly agreed.

Unohana bent down and planted a kiss on Kotaro's cheek, "Goodnight sunshine, I'll see you soon," she then stepped away towards Nanao's room and peered in through the gap. She then closed the door gently and said to Toushiro, "See you soon Toushiro. Unfortunately I still have a bit of paperwork that needs attending to before I can call it a night," with that said she began gliding away down the corridor leaving him alone with a snoozing Kotaro. Rangiku was still leaning against his shoulder, but she was holding herself much too still for his liking.

He sighed, "How much longer are you going to pretend being asleep, Rangiku?"

Rangiku lifted her head off his shoulder and stared back at him with indignation, "I wasn't pretending to be asleep!"

"Hmm all right. Second question," Toushiro met her eye with a small smirk, "Why were you eavesdropping?"

"I wasn't eavesdropping," she replied going on the defensive, "Its rude to interrupt people while they're having a conversation," Rangiku held up her hand to examine her perfect nails, "So I was patiently waiting for you to finish."

"That is still eavesdropping!" Toushiro exclaimed feeling a deep sense of deja vu. Didn't he have this exact same conversation with Kotaro only yesterday? Now he knew where Kotaro had picked it up from. It sure as hell wasn't from him, "How much did you hear?" He sighed.

"Quite a bit," Rangiku replied nonplussed.

"How much is quite a bit?" Toushiro pressed.

"When you jolted awake, you also jolted me awake," Rangiku replied softly, "I was just feeling too lazy to open my eyes though."

"Nice," Toushiro replied sarcastically, "So then, now that you're not pretending to be asleep any more," he sat up and shrugged the rest of Rangiku's body off his side, "How about we get little man back home and to bed. I never did get that sandwich and I'm starving."

Rangiku reached for his face and squidged his cheeks between her thumb and fingers, causing his lips to screw up in a grotesque manner, "Aww is my lil Toushi-pops all hungry and grumpy."

Toushiro scowled, "Hey! We agreed you were never ever ever ever EVER... allowed to call me that again."

Rangiku released his face then planted a kiss on his lips, "Sorry," she then sprung to her feet and swooped down to gently scoop Kotaro up into her arms, "I'm hungry too," she then held out a spare hand and pulled Toushiro to his feet, "Lets go home."

Toushiro smiled and took her hand, "Yes lets go home."

Unknown to Toushiro and Rangiku, Ukitake was sat in Nanao's room clutching at his chest also in a state of deep shock. Having heard everything that Toushiro and Unohana had been discussing too.

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><p>All was quiet in the headquarters of the First Division. Deathly quiet.<p>

Not a single member of the First Division had failed to notice, that the Head-Captain had been chewing out four of his Captains. Paper walls after all offered no protection to sound, and Yamamoto's loud roars and shouts had carried throughout the entire division.

Nobody in the First Division knew the true nature of Yamamoto's disapproval, all they knew was that he'd been pissed off. Very pissed off.

That had been several hours ago and since then, everything had remained ominously quiet. Nobody knew what was transpiring inside the Head-Captains office. All they did know, was that it was too damn quiet and that the Head-Captain and Shunsui were still in there.

Sasakibe cautiously approached the Head-Captains office door and before he lifted his hand to knock, he paused to see if he could hear any sounds within.

At first he heard nothing, then the Head-Captain slammed his hand down onto his desk, "Well Shunsui, are you going to make you're move or do I have to make it for you!" Yamamoto's voice boomed suddenly.

"You can bark and growl all you want Yama-jii," Shunsui replied in a low voice, "But I'm still going to take my sweet time."

Sasakibe momentarily decided whether or not to disturb them, but thought better of it and allowed his hand to fall away from the door. Those reports could wait till later.

In the uncomfortably hot and stuffy office, Shunsui surveyed the situation before him and knew he was screwed. The Head-Captain was goading him, intentionally wanting him to fall into his trap.

Shunsui glanced across the desk at Yamamoto. The old man knew victory was fast approaching, it was written all over his face. Shunsui pulled his gaze away from the Head-Captains, he knew he was going to need all his wit and cunning to get out of this alive.

As he started going over possible strategies in his head, he thought back to how he'd managed to get himself into this sticky situation.

_~Four Hours Ago~_

"_Nanao Ise," Unohana only hesitated slightly, "Is pregnant."_

"_If that is all Retsu," Yamamoto growled out between clenched teeth._

"_Yes sir, I have nothing more to add."_

"_THEN GET OUT!" The Head-Captain bellowed._

_As Unohana disappeared out the door, Shunsui felt a deep sense of aloneness. Sure he never wanted Ukitake, Unohana, or even Toushiro to get involved in all this, but their presense by his side just now had been comforting._

_Yamamoto levelled his heavy gaze on Shunsui, one side of his lip lifting in a silent growl, "Well then, are you going to explain yourself!"_

_Don't get angry, he told himself. You must stay calm, he reminded himself. The only reason he was here after all was to negotiate and ensure Nanao wouldn't feel any backlash from everything that'd transpired. He would do whatever it takes to keep her safe and by his side, "I didn't come here to explain myself."_

"_Then why did you come here Shunsui?" Yamamoto growled dangerously._

_While keeping his tone even Shunsui replied, "I want you to leave Nanao-chan out of this. She's been through enough already. I will take the full responsibility for everything that's happened."_

_The rooms temperature hiked right up again before the Head-Captain bellowed, "Damn right you WILL take responsibility Kyouraku!"_

_Shunsui thought for a moment that his ear drums were going to burst._

"_I don't even know where to begin with YOU!" _

_He closed his eyes and decided to let Yamamoto's long, loud tirade wash over him. He'd expected this to happen, so it came as no big shock or surprise to him. After all this wouldn't have been the first time he'd been called up in front of Yamamoto. It'd happened so many times back in the Academy days. Even quite a few times whilst being in the Gotei 13. It'd been many years since the last time he'd been here, but he knew this time would be the worst by far._

"_No paperwork has been turned in for weeks. WEEKS! You've been completely ignoring your Captains duties, not a single one of your seated officers have received any sort of direction from you. I've received several reports from your division members that you've failed to turn up to teach any scheduled training sessions. THAT is neglecting your division members needs. WHO exactly is running YOUR division at the moment? Then you've been withholding important medical information regarding yourself and your Lieutenant. You've also been covering up a potentially DANGEROUS situation. I've received no less then ninety reports from concerned Shinigami about an incident that happened just over a week ago. Several people were under the impression that YOU were attacking YOUR lieutenant and were forcing yourself on HER! And now NOW I've just learnt that you've impregnated Miss Ise."_

_Shunsui thought that he'd momentarily gone deaf when the Head-Captain finished yelling. However it was only a brief reprieve, it seemed the Head-Captain was just simply pausing for breath._

"_You've even disobeyed my direct orders, might I add in front of all the other Captains and Lieutenants. You've gone too far this time Shunsui. WAY too far. You're a disgrace to the rank of Captain!"_

_Shunsui's eyes were still closed, normally he wouldn't be this passive when facing Yamamoto. This time however it wasn't about him wanting to prove a point. It was about Nanao, the child and their future together. For once he was keeping a lid on the sarcasm and jokes._

"_Shunsui look at me," The Head-Captain ordered in a surprisingly calm voice, considering he'd just been roaring like a bear._

_Shunsui peeked his eyes open and met Yamamoto's gaze who for once had opened his eyes._

"_I'm only going to ask you this once and I want an honest answer. Don't even try to lie to me, because if you do I will know," Yamamoto paused before asking, "Did you rape Nanao Ise?"_

_Shunsui felt as though he'd been slapped, hard. The Head-Captains question had an instant and profound effect on him. His inner mantra of staying calm and to not get angry, evaporated as a cloud of rage came over him. His insides were boiling, the blood was pounding between his ears. His fists clench tightly and a strangled cry escaped his lips before he tried to launched himself at the Head-Captain. _

_Or at least he tried to. It took his anger filled brain a few moments to realise that his body wouldn't move. Its not that it wouldn't move. It couldn't. It felt like he'd been paralysed._

"_You foolish boy," The Head-Captain stepped over to him and stopped a few inches in front of him, "Did you really think for one minute that I'd even let you get close."_

_Shunsui tried to make some angry retort but he seemed to be having issues with talking too. Weirdly enough though, he could still move his head. So he settled for glaring at Yamamoto._

"_I'll ask again Shunsui," Yamamoto turned his back on him and headed over to his desk, "Did you ra-"_

"_NO!" Shunsui roared having finally found his voice again, "Of course I didn't! I would never even dream of doing that to Nanao-chan" Shunsui strained himself to move but the Head-Captains paralysing kido that he'd discreetly used was proving too strong to shake off. So he settled for hurling some angry, incomprehensible insults at the old man. With a flick of Yamamoto's wrist, his voice once again was cut off._

"_Such filth spilling forth from your mouth Shunsui," The head-Captain parked himself down in his seat, picked up a brush and started to fill out a form, "You can stay right where you are until you've calmed down some."_

_As much as he tried to struggle, Shunsui had been forced to admit that he wasn't going anywhere any time soon. _

_It'd been a full hour before the Head-Captain had finally looked up at him again, "Have you calmed yourself down a bit now?"_

_Shunsui gave him a hard glare._

"_Really now, such childish behaviour," Yamamoto then kicked his leg out and a spare stool that'd been under his desk skidded across the polished wooden floor and stopped just in front of his desk, he pointed at it, "Sit," he ordered._

_Shunsui felt the paralysing kido wear off and his limbs turned to jelly before the feeling came fully back to them. He stumbled over to the stool and awkwardly perched himself on it. He knew how much Yamamoto hated it when people leaned on his desk. So just to be spiteful he propped one of his elbows on the edge and draped himself over the edge. He then glanced at Yamamoto and noticed that his left eyebrow twitched ever so slightly, yet he didn't comment._

_Round one to me, Shunsui thought._

"_I think its high time we talked Shunsui," Yamamoto spoke up after several long minutes of silence. He placed his writing brush down and put the form he'd been filling to one side, "I want you to tell me about everything that's happened. All of it. Leave nothing out."_

_Shunsui remained quiet and busied himself by browsing at all the stuff layed out on the Head-Captains desk. It was the same usual boring administration stuff, that could be found in any office in the Seireitei. Apart from one thing that stood out like a sore thumb. Who would have thought?_

"_I already told you Yama-jii," Shunsui reached out a finger and began fiddling with the object that'd caught his eye, "I didn't come here to explain myself."_

"_DON'T touch that!" Yamamoto barked at Shunsui._

"_Why not?" Shunsui asked lazily as he continued to run his fingers over the very old and very worn figurine._

"_Its not a toy," growled the Head-Captain._

_Shunsui plucked the small figurine from its resting place and brought it up to his eye level to examine it closely, "Its a miniature castle."_

_Yamamoto slammed his hand down on the desk, "Put that BACK!" _

"_I'm not going to break it," Shunsui couldn't help but feel slightly amused at the Head-Captains irritation. _

"_I don't care, now put it back," Yamamoto barked._

"_You really don't like people touching your toys, do you?" Shunsui replied as he reached for another piece, this time a knight._

"_Its not a toy NOW put it back!" The Head-Captain growled dangerously._

"_But its a chess piece... Chess is a board game... Board games are for little kids. The same little kids that play with toys," Shunsui kept his face neutral, but inside he was smiling at being able to wind the old man up. _

"_PUT THEM BACK!" Yamamoto howled when he noticed that Shunsui had picked up another piece._

"_Do you actually play with this thing or is it just for decoration?"_

"_Chess is a game of strategy, of tactics," The Head-Captain commented warily, "It takes a lot of thought to out think and out manoeuvre your opponent. It's not a game for mere children."_

"_Fascinating," Shunsui eyed the chess board and ran a hand over his stubbly cheeks._

"_I know what you're doing Shunsui," Yamamoto straightened up in his chair, "Stop stalling and start explaining." _

"_I already told you Yama-jii," Shunsui replied stubbornly, "I'm not here to explain myself."_

"_Well you're not leaving this room until you do!"_

_Shunsui got to his feet and stretched lazily, "Well then, its looks like I'm going to be here for quite a while then," his eyes landed on the ancient chess board, "However shall I pass the time," he then made a point of reaching out to touch another chess piece._

_Yamamoto snapped his writing brush in two, "Just what are you up to Shunsui?"_

"_I'm just curious as to whether you can play as well as me," Shunsui glanced at Yamamoto, the challenge clear in his voice, "That's all."_

"_I accept your challenge," the Head-Captain rose from his chair and rested his palms against the desk, "Only if you tell me everything first."_

"_No deal," Shunsui didn't even bother trying to suppress his grin this time, "But if I lose, then that would be more of a forfeit. Don't you think?" _

"_And if you win?" The Head-Captain asked trying not to sound annoyed._

"_I've already said," Shunsui replied seriously, "I want you to leave Nanao-chan out of this. She's already been through enough."_

"_Shunsui, you do realise whether you win or lose. I still need to punish you. How I end up punishing you, will of course depend on how well you explain your actions to me. There's still a chance for you to redeem yourself, are you seriously going to throw that chance away? All I have to go on at the moment is the general hear say of rumours."_

To anyone who happened to walk into the Head-Captains office, it would appear as though they were having a friendly game of chess. However there was much more riding on this game then simply aiming for a win.

Staring at the chess board and seeing no possible way of beating The Head-Captain, the only thing Shunsui could do now was to lose with dignity.

'I'm sorry Nanao-chan, I tried,' he thought to himself. Maybe he could still arrange it so that she would be left alone.

As he slowly reached his hand out to topple his own king as a sign of forfeit, he paused when he felt his Zanpakuto spirit grow restless in his mind.

'What is it?' He asked as he withdrew his hand from the board.

'You cant win,' Katen Kyokotsu stated the obvious, 'But there is a better option then losing.'

A stream of images whizzed through his head and he soon understood what his Zanpakuto was getting at. He reached for his knight and moved it to intercept Yamamoto's queen instead. He was going to sacrifice his knight.

He followed Katen Kyokotsu's suggestions and soon he found the odds had been evened up a bit. Shunsui examined the board and smiled. He knew he still couldn't win, and now neither could the Head-Captain.

They had reached a stalemate.

Shunsui lifted his eyes from the board and grinned at Yamamoto, "I do believe that is a draw Yama-jii."

Quick as lightening Yamamoto's hand shot out of nowhere and swept the whole board and the remaining pieces off his desk. The wooden board fell to the floor with a clatter and the remaining pieces scattered across the large expanse of office floor.

"Yama-jii!" Shunsui exclaimed loudly, "What did you do that for!"

"I've had it with your games Shunsui!" He slammed his hands down on his desk, "You WILL tell me everything, right NOW!"

"WILL YOU QUIT RAISING YOUR VOICE AT ME," Shunsui roared back finally losing his patience. They stared back at each other for awhile before Shunsui looked away and began pacing, "I'd decided during that game that I was going to tell you everything anyway."

"Why the change of heart?" Yamamoto dead panned.

"Do you think I really care whether I win or lose some stupid game?" Shunsui threw his arms wide, "Because I don't. The only thing I care about right now, is the welfare of Nanao-chan and our unborn child."

"Sit down Shunsui," The Head-Captain ordered again, "And tell me everything."

Shunsui complied, he took a few breaths then lifted his gaze to Yamamoto. Then he proceeded to tell him everything. Just like with Rangiku and Juushiro, he left nothing out. He just didn't see the point in trying to hide anything now. He was fairly sure he'd be damned whether or not he omitted a few facts. Several times he made his point very clear that Nanao wasn't to blame. Even if he was doomed, he'd sure as hell make sure that Nanao would be in the clear.

After he'd finished up telling Yamamoto everything, right up to the conversation he and Unohana had had in the Fourth before coming to the First. He let out a long weary sigh and cradled his head in his hands. He felt tired and drained. The matter was way out of his hands now. Good or bad, he would just have to face whatever consequences were thrown at him now.

The Head-Captain let out an equally long sigh and got to his feet. He strolled over to the open wall of his office and looked down over the Seireitei.

"You really are an idiot Shunsui," Yamamoto commented dryly, "So much of this mess could have avoided. I cant simply just brush this incident under the rug either. You disobeyed my direct orders in front our top ranks. If I let this matter drop without any repercussions, I'd have an uproar on my hands."

"Yama-jii please," Shunsui realised he was pleading, but he didn't care at this stage, "I will accept whatever punishment you see fit," he shrugged out of his Captains haori and placed it on Yamamoto's desk, all he had on now was the bottom half of his uniform and the bandaging that Isane had wrapped around his chest, "I will even resign from my post has the Captain of the Eighth. Just please... please don't punish Nanao-chan for my actions."

"Hmm. You'd toss away your entire Shinigami career for the sake of Miss Ise... Why?"

"Because I love her!" Shunsui shot back in a firm and adamant tone.

"Interesting," Yamamoto turned his back on him again, "And all this time I was under the impression that it was nothing more then a fling."

"I'd hardly call a six year relationship that's still going strong, a fling," Shunsui growled back.

"And what of the unborn child?" Yamamoto asked stiffly.

"I'll love it and raise it and be the best damn farther any child could wish for," Shunsui's voice was like steel, "Not that its really any of your business anyway."

"Hmm and what if I stripped you of your rank and threw you out of the Gotei 13?"

"Then I'd take Nanao-chan and the child with me."

For ten agonizingly long minutes, all was silent.

"SASAKIBE!" The Head-Captain bellowed.

Within seconds the Lieutenant had materialized. He quickly glanced between the Head-Captain, then to Shunsui, before his eyes dropped to Shunsui's discarded haori on Yamamoto's desk, "Sir."

"Please escort Shunsui to a cell," Yamamoto turned to face them again, "He will spend the night there whilst I determine an appropriate punishment for him. Shunsui you will know my decision first thing tomorrow morning."

Shunsui stared back at Yamamoto for a few moments before he looked away, "Very well," he then strolled over to the door, knowing quite well where the cells were located.

He was just about to reach for the door handle to pull the door open when Yamamoto cleared his throat, "One more thing Sasakibe."

"Sir?"

"Please see to it that Miss Nanao Ise's warrant of arrest is revoked."

"Yes Sir," Sasakibe complied obediently.

Shunsui slid his eyes closed and let out a small sigh of relief. Whatever the Head-Captain had in store for him tomorrow morning, didn't matter. At least he'd accomplished what he'd set out to do by coming here. He'd gotten Nanao off the hook. Even though he'd be spending the night in a cell, at least he could sleep easy knowing she would be safe.


	33. Chapter 33

Hello Everyone, Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. Theres not much happening in this chapter, just alot of well needed fluff. Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 33<p>

A few days had passed by in the Soul Society without incident, much to everyone's relief. As Unohana walked the quiet, deserted corridors of the infirmary as she did her early morning rounds, her mind was going over a few concerning matters.

Due to Unohana's strict regimen of resting, small regular meals every few hours and then even more resting, Nanao had shown a slight improvement in her physical health. She still had a very long way to go before she'd be fully recovered, but at least it was a start. It was already tough enough getting a person back on their feet after being so run down and burnt out. But adding pregnancy into the mix, now that just came with a whole new set of complications and problems.

Despite Nanao finally getting some rest and nutrition she was however, still very stressed out and anxious. For Unohana, it was Nanao's emotional health that was the biggest problem and the greatest concern to her at the moment.

Nanao was a very private and reserved person. Under normal circumstances she would never be very forthcoming about her feelings, whether they were good or bad. She was generally the type of person who would suffer in silence, rather then open up and talk about her feelings. It'd taken Shunsui many years to get her to open up to him and admit that she too, had feelings for him.

It was this small fact that was unfortunately working against them now.

Unohana knew that Nanao was hurting deeply. She also knew that stress and anxiety were coiling away deep inside of her. Just like she knew Nanao was most likely suffering to some degree with depression. She desperately needed Nanao to open up and talk to her, so she could steer her on the road to recovery. However it seemed as though Nanao had completely withdrawn emotionally, and had retreated into a rock hard shell that neither Rangiku, Ukitake or Unohana herself could breakthrough.

When Rangiku had visited Nanao the day before. Afterwards she'd reported that Nanao had simply sat in her bed hugging her knees to her chest, while she stared off into space. When Rangiku had been filling her in on the latest SWA meeting that had been held two days prior, not once did Nanao show any interest in their latest activities. It was baffling really, especially since Nanao was technically the leader of the association. Yachiru was the president, but everyone knew it was Nanao who put all the work into the group. She was the one who did all the planning and organizing of the events. For Rangiku, Nanao's lack of interest had been worrying.

It was likely that Nanao's lack of interest stemmed from her current state of exhaustion. Maybe in time once she'd rested a bit more and had started to relax a little bit, then just maybe Nanao would open up to them a bit better.

Unohana suspected though that Nanao probably wouldn't get the full rest and relaxation she needed until she was back at home, where she felt more comfortable and safe. Unohana knew this well from Nanao's past visits to the infirmary. Nanao would always be fine spending hours there if she was visiting someone else. Yet when it was herself, she would always grow restless and edgy.

Unohana would've been happy to discharge Nanao, if it would help to accelerate her recovery. There was something about being back at home that generally saw the greatest improvement in a patients recovery. However she seriously worried as to whether or not Nanao could cope on her own, giving her low levels of energy. It seemed even the simplest of tasks like eating or answering a few questions tired her out. Yes Nanao's physical health had improved slightly, but Unohana worried that the young lieutenant wouldn't have the energy to get up and take care of herself and her basic needs. If Nanao was to go home, would she follow the strict pattern of eating and resting, or would she skip meals again. Unohana doubted that Nanao would try and attempt to do any paperwork in her current state. But once she started to feel better again, what would stop her from slipping back into her old bad habits? With a baby on its way, Unohana knew Nanao couldn't afford to live like that again. It would prove fatal to both the unborn child and Nanao herself. So for that reason alone, Unohana had been reluctant to even consider discharging Nanao from the Fourth as of yet.

If she could guarantee that Nanao would get the care she needed, then discharging her wouldn't be an issue. Ideally Nanao would need someone to supervise her and ensure that she got the vital meals and rest that she needed. The most logical and obvious choice would be for Nanao to go home and live with Shunsui as normal.

Unfortunately though, nobody knew of Shunsui's current whereabouts. The last time any of them had seen him, had been the night they'd all stood before the Head-Captain. That had been five days ago. They still couldn't trace his reiatsu and after checking, they determined he wasn't in any of his usual places. He'd simply vanished without a trace. It went without saying, that they were all concerned and worried about his sudden absence.

Had the Head-Captain's anger been so intense that he'd lost control and injured Shunsui severely? Had he been tossed in a cell somewhere? Handed over to Central 46? There were so many possibilities and each held the potential for severe consequences. Shunsui could be stripped of his Captaincy, demoted, discharged from the Gotei 13, tossed in the maggots nest, exiled and even placed up for execution. For all they knew he could already be dead.

Unohana shuddered and shook off that train of thought, it wouldn't do any good to dwell on it too much. Her thoughts instead strayed to Ukitake.

For a couple of days Ukitake had been very distant with her. For two days running he'd missed their usual afternoon cup of tea together. The evening meal they'd planned on having together, never happened. He'd cancelled with the excuse of being busy. Then the thing that made her realise something wasn't right with him, was when he'd came to the Fourth to visit Nanao a few days ago.

Nanao had been asleep at the time and he'd only been there for twenty minutes. Unohana had chosen then to check up on Nanao and as soon as she'd stepped into the room, Ukitake had practically tried to bail out. He'd already been several metres down the corridor before she'd caught up with him.

"_Juushiro wait," she reached out and latched onto his wrist, he immediately slowed down to a stop._

"_Retsu I don't have time," he turned slowly to face her, "I need to get back to my division." _

"_Don't lie to me Juushiro, you've never been any good at it," her other hand came up and held onto his hand that she'd already caught, "I know something is bothering you. You've been offish with me since the night we brought Nanao in."_

_Ukitake pulled his hand out of her grasp and threw his arms wide, "Nothing is bothering me. Apparently I'm perfectly fine now, according to you and Toushiro at least."_

"_You overheard our conversation," Unohana sighed softly, "I should have known."_

"_When exactly were you planning on telling me this 'great news' Retsu?"_

"_Well if you'd actually shown up for our usual afternoon tea, instead of avoiding me like you have been. You would have known by now."_

"_Oh and by now I should be jumping for joy and cheering about this? Well I'm not. This disease is a terrible thing Retsu. You should know that. How can you even expect me to be happy about the fact, that poor Kotaro also had to experience it too!"_

"_Kotaro is absolutely fine now, Juushiro," Unohana took a small breath and tried to reassert her inner calm. She then reached out and ran her hands down Ukitake's arms before reaching his hands and holding them gently, "Please just let me explain to you how all this happened." _

"_I need some space Retsu," He broke his gaze away from hers and sighed, "Just give me a couple more days okay."_

Unohana had agreed with him and then they'd arranged to meet a few days later to have afternoon tea together as usual. Which happened to be today.

She'd had a feeling from the first moment when they'd discovered what had happened, that he'd probably be upset by it all. Just not as upset as he had been. It was also one of the reasons why she'd told Toushiro that she would break the news to him separately. She just hoped that she could get him to see that it was actually a good thing, and that Kotaro was absolutely fine.

Unohana sighed as she rounded a corner, at least Kotaro seemed to be doing fine. When Rangiku had last spoken to her, she'd mentioned that Kotaro was full of energy and had been driving Toushiro crazy. A small smile found its way onto her face, she was pleased the three of them were doing well.

She took another turn and strolled gracefully down the long corridor. She'd completed her rounds and now she was paying a visit to her final patient. Glancing down the long list of names, there was only one name that hadn't been signed off yet. Nanao Ise.

She was only a few corridors away from the young lieutenants room and when she extended her awareness to get an idea of how Nanao was today, she also brushed up against a second presense.

It seemed like Ukitake was paying Nanao an early morning visit too.

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><p>When Rangiku woke up, she rolled onto her back and stretched lazily. She ignored her aching muscles, which had been thoroughly abused during the night, and sat up in bed. She glanced to her right and realised that Toushiro had woken up and left for the office already. The house sounded too quiet. After doing a quick scan she realised Kotaro wasn't in the house either, otherwise he would've woken her up hours ago.<p>

She glanced at the clock and was shocked to see that it was nearing midday.

Rangiku sighed sleepily and flopped back down onto the bed. She reached her hand out and grabbed Toushiro's pillow, hugging it tightly to her chest. She buried her face in it, savouring his familiar scent.

What a night, it'd been completely unexpected. Which in her mind had made it all the more enjoyable.

She'd been going about her usual bedtime routine. After she'd had her usual shower, she would then pop into Kotaro's room to make sure that he'd settled down okay. Last night however, Toushiro had suggested that she should have a nice long soak in the bath instead. Which she'd done. It wasn't often that she could do that when Kotaro was awake, and usually by the time she got around to having a shower in the evening she felt exhausted. Having a shower was always the quickest and most favoured option when she just wanted to get to bed. So for her to have a long bath, had been a treat. Once she'd emerged from the bathroom, as always she'd checked on Kotaro. Just as she'd expected, he was sound asleep. She'd kissed his forehead then walked out his room and down the hallway to hers and Toushiro's bedroom.

_Rangiku pushed the door open with one hand, while the other held onto her towel. She stepped into their room and paused when she noticed the unusual soft light flickering in the room. The source of the light was coming from a small collection of candles that had been placed on each of the bedside tables. In the centre of the bed was one lone red rose._

_Rangiku quirked an eyebrow, then stepped over to the bed and picked up the rose._

"_You look beautiful, Rangiku," Toushiro's voice came from amongst the shadows._

_Rangiku turned around slowly and saw Toushiro leaning against the wall, with a small smile on his face. She took another look and realised that he was only wearing a loose white towel that he'd slung around his hips. In his right hand he was also holding another red rose._

_Toushiro pushed away from the wall and slowly stepped over to her, wrapping his arms around her waist. He then lifted a hand to the base of her neck and slowly guided her lips down to his. _

_Rangiku pulled away and grinned at him, "So what's all this about then?"_

_Toushiro quirked an eyebrow in amusement, "Don't tell me you've forgotten about your own Birthday. It is tomorrow Rangiku," he then guided her back towards the bed, "Consider this an early present," he mumbled as he captured her lips once again._

"_Toshi wait!" She yelped as the back of her knees hit the edge of the bed and she went crashing down onto the bed, pulling Toushiro down with her._

_He looked down at her and smirked before tracing his hands up her sides and over her breasts to where her towel was secured just above them. He unwrapped the towel and allowed it to fall open._

_Rangiku broke off the kiss and pouted at him, "No fair Toshi, its my Birthday tomorrow. I should be the one unwrapping you instead." She ran her hand up his back, over his shoulder, then travelled down over his chest and stomach till she reached his waist. With one sharp tug, his towel came away and fell to the floor._

_Now they were even._

Rangikusighed happily at the memory. They had been awake till the early hours of the morning. When they'd finally grown tired she'd vaguely remembered seeing the pre dawn light starting to seep in through the bedroom curtains.

She couldn't imagine that Toushiro had gotten much sleep.

Rangiku reached her arms high above her head and stretched again, before attempting to get out of bed. Her sore muscles groaned at her, but she eventually managed to get to her feet.

She was just contemplating what to do first, when a piece of paper on her bedside table caught her eye. She reached for it and lifted it to her eye, she recognized Toushiro's handwriting anywhere.

_Dear Rangiku,_

_Happy Birthday my love._

_You looked so peaceful this morning when I woke up. I didn't have the heart to disturb you. I would've loved to have stayed in bed so we could've woken up together, however there were a few matters I needed to attend to. Don't worry about little man, I took him into work with me so you could rest. Besides which, I needed his help with something. We should be finished around lunchtime. Do you think you could meet us in the office around then?_

_Rest, relax and enjoy your morning. You deserve it. _

_See you later Rangiku._

_Love Toushiro._

She smiled at the neatly written note. She smiled even more when she saw the messy kiddy scribble that Kotaro himself had added to the bottom of it. It was short and sweet, _Happy Birthday Mummy! Xxxx_

Rangiku held it to her chest for a few moments before stepping over to a drawer and pulling it open. Inside was a box which she pulled out and opened. Inside was a small collection of photo's, trinkets and other memorable things she'd collected over the years. She pulled one specific photo out which was from four, almost five years ago. It was her most favourite and precious photo she owned. It was of Toushiro holding Kotaro when he was only a few hours old. She placed the letter Toushiro had written for her, with the photo and carefully placed it back in the box. She then rose to her feet and headed for the bathroom.

She wanted to look fabulous for seeing her two very special guys.

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><p>A pair of sparkling teal eyes were fixed longingly on the tray of cupcakes that were sat before them. They were drinking in every inch of the beautiful detailing. The light and fluffy sponge, the creamy texture of the pink swirly frosting, the heavenly scent of lemon and sweetness. Even the delicate sugar flowers that had been carefully placed on top for decoration.<p>

All that together made for one mouthwatering sight.

Kotaro sniffed and sighed appreciatively and wondered if he could try a bit of the frosting. He lifted a small finger intending to brush it over the nearest cupcake.

"Kotaro," Toushiro called in warning from the other side of the office, "Leave the cupcakes alone."

Kotaro glanced over his shoulder and smiled sweetly, "I was just checking to make sure they were all right Daddy."

"They're absolutely fine, now leave them alone," came Toushiro's voice from high up a ladder.

"Can I try one Daddy?" Kotaro asked with a pout.

"No, not yet," Toushiro called over his shoulder as he hammered a nail into the wall, "We need to wait for Mummy to get here first."

"Aww," Kotaro whined as he padded back across the room, "They look so nice."

"I know they do little man," Toushiro chuckled, "You'll be able to try one soon. Can you pass me the end of the banner up please?"

Kotaro skipped over to him and picked up the end of the banner then stood on his tiptoes.

"Thanks," Toushiro reached down and grabbed it, then lifted it to the wall. With one last hit of the hammer, Toushiro leaned back and admired his work, "Finished."

Kotaro's eyes lit up and he bounced on his feet while clapping his hands, "Yay it looks great Daddy!"

Toushiro cast his eyes around the room. He'd Pushed the couch to one side and the coffee table had also been moved to open up the floor space in the middle. He'd then placed a large blanket down on the floor and had set up a few plates, beakers, cutlery and napkins. Then on the coffee table he'd placed all the food and drink. On Rangiku's desk was a sizeable collection of presents, cards and flowers, that had been pouring in throughout the morning from Rangiku's well-wishers.

Toushiro had decorated both their desks with pink and white balloons, and on his own desk was the presents and flowers from him and Kotaro. He'd just made the finishing touch to Rangiku's surprise Birthday picnic by placing a large banner on the wall that read, 'Happy Birthday.'

"Do you think Mummy's going to like it?" Toushiro asked as he started putting his tools away.

Kotaro bounced up and down excitedly, "Mummy's going to love it!"

There was an urgent knock on the office door and Toushiro frowned. He glanced at the clock and knew it wouldn't be Rangiku just yet. Besides, he'd been keeping a close eye on her energy. The moment she started to head over here he would know.

"Would you answer the door please, Kotaro," Toushiro asked as he started to descend the ladder, having recognized straight away who their visitor was.

Kotaro padded over to the office door and pulled it open. His eyes lit up when he realised who it was, "Grandad!" he rushed forward and threw his arms around Ukitake's legs.

Ukitake had his hands full and could hardly see where he was going, "Hello young man, I assume you're down there somewhere."

Toushiro glanced at Ukitake and smirked before stepping over to help him, "Need a hand Ukitake?"

"Thank you Toushiro," Ukitake turned and placed everything he was carrying in Toushiro's arms, then sank to his knees and pulled Kotaro into a bone-crushing hug, "Kotaro, my boy! You wonderful wonderful child."

"Grandad?" Kotaro questioned, his voice sounded muffled against Ukitake's shoulder, "What happened to your hair?" He stared at Ukitake's hair in disbelief, he was so used to seeing his Grandad with white hair. Instead it was white at the top, the mid sections were a steel grey colour and then the ends were jet black.

"Such a special little boy," Ukitake lifted him up and planted a kiss on his forehead apparently not hearing his question.

Toushiro glanced at the things Ukitake had placed in his arms, a large sack of candy, a few toys, flowers, a few wrapped presents, "Ukitake, what is all this?"

"Oh that's right," still holding Kotaro in his arms, Ukitake straightened up and beamed at Toushiro, "The flowers, chocolates and presents are from me and Retsu for Rangiku's Birthday."

"I see," Toushiro stumbled over to his desk and awkwardly placed the gifts for Rangiku beside the ones he and Kotaro and brought for her.

"And then the sack of candy and toys are for this truly wonderful child here," Ukitake glanced down at Kotaro in his arms and smiled warmly.

"Ah," Toushiro spoke up after he'd placed the rest of the items down, "I assume Unohana's finally told you what happened?"

Ukitake nodded, "She told me this morning."

Toushiro quirked an eyebrow, "She waited this long to tell you?"

Ukitake shook his head and sighed, "I vaguely heard the conversation between the two of you that night in the Fourth. I didn't know all the details and it disturbed me a lot that you two sounded so happy about the fact, that Kotaro had also experienced this terrible disease."

"I thought Unohana was going to tell you everything as soon as possible?"

"Well she was but," Ukitake lifted a hand to scratch the back of his head.

"But what?" Toushiro asked with a light scowl.

"I was kind of avoiding Retsu for a few days," Ukitake replied sheepishly. Seeing Toushiro's scowl he quickly added, "I guess what I'd over heard had freaked me out a little bit."

Toushiro sighed and shook his head, "But now you know everything?"

"Yes I do Toushiro," Ukitake lifted his spare hand and began absent-mindedly playing with a tuft of Kotaro's hair, "Retsu explained everything. She's also done a bit more research on the matter. I think my colour changing hair was starting to bother her somewhat."

"Has she found anything else out?" Toushiro began bustling around and straightening the rest of the room out.

"Well," Ukitake lowered Kotaro back down to the floor, "The reason why my hair keeps changing colour is because my system is still quite unsettled and its taking time to adjust to the changes. It will settle down eventually, as to what colour my hair will end up. Who knows. But as you can see, its not changing colour as rapidly as before."

"Grandad," Kotaro called with a sad look on his face.

"What is it Kotaro?" Ukitake asked with concern after seeing his expression.

"What will happen if your hair isn't white any more?" Kotaro glanced at Toushiro before looking at Ukitake again, "We wont be Shiro-chan any more!"

Toushiro chuckled before glancing at the clock, it was nearing one in the afternoon and still no sign of Rangiku, "Kotaro, would you like to run a small errand for me?"

"What do you want me to do Daddy?"

"Could you run back home and see where your Mothers got to please," Toushiro swept his eyes around the room, "We're all set here, just waiting for the special guest to arrive."

Kotaro's face lit up, "Okay Daddy I'm on it!" He then padded over to the door and disappeared out of sight.

"Such a special child," Ukitake watched Kotaro go with a small smile and lifted a hand to his chest.

"Ukitake," Toushiro began as he saw Ukitake rubbing at his chest, "You are happy about this, aren't you? I know Kotaro's powers are immature and that he didn't fully cure you of the disease."

"Toushiro, now that I've had time to process what's happened, I can tell you that I'm very very grateful towards Kotaro. I'm still not happy that he's had to experience it too, but how can I begrudge the fact that he accidentally took away the worst of my symptoms? I will still get sick, but its likely that they will only ever be mild chest colds and infections from now on. Compared to what I've had to put up with in the past, I can easily live with a few colds."

"I'm glad you see it that way," Toushiro stepped over to the ladders to put them away, "Its like I said to Rangiku, you've been searching for a cure for years. Its like a miracle has happened."

Ukitake closed his eyes and nodded, when he opened them again he glanced around the room for the first time, "This all looks lovely Toushiro."

"Thanks. Its a bit too chilly to have lunch outside, so I've decided to surprise Rangiku by throwing her a Birthday picnic inside instead."

"Its a fabulous idea Toushiro," Ukitake smiled, "I best get out of your way before Rangiku gets here."

"Actually I was hoping you would stay and have lunch with us. I know for a fact Rangiku wants to see you, and Kotaro's always happy to spend time with you."

"I wouldn't want to intrude Toushiro."

"You wont be intruding," Toushiro stepped over to the window and glanced out, he saw a flash of orange hair. Rangiku was finally on her way, "Ukitake."

"Yes Toushiro?"

"Have you had any luck finding out what's happened to Shunsui yet?"

Ukitake sighed, "No, its like he's just completely vanished. There's just no trace of him anywhere."

Toushiro turned to face Ukitake, "We're going to have do some digging around then. Maybe start by checking the Firsts cells."

"I know, and its going to be risky Toushiro," Ukitake frowned, "But I know Shunsui, he wouldn't stay away from Nanao this long. Especially with her being ill. He must have been detained somewhere and is being prevented from seeing her. But even so, if that was the case then-"

"He would still find a way to get back to her regardless," Toushiro concluded coolly, "He so damn stubborn. Hmm I wonder."

"What is it Toushiro?"

"We should probably check the Eighths main office too."

"Why?"

"The other day I was considering going over there anyway. From what Rangiku told me, there was a shed load of untouched paperwork that'd stacked up. I was going to tackle some of it, just to take the pressure off Nanao. If she knows its getting done, then hopefully that will also aid in her relaxation somewhat."

"That's good of you Toushiro, I shall take a share of it too," Ukitake offered, "However I sensed an ulterior motive."

"Maybe, we'll just have to go and check it out first though."

There was an increase in noise outside the office door as Kotaro excitedly dragged Rangiku to the office, "Come on Mummy, come and see!"

"Kotaro slow down!" Rangiku replied breathlessly.

"Do you want to go later on today?" Ukitake asked before Rangiku and Kotaro could enter the office.

"Yes, we'll go later on tonight," Toushiro stepped away from his desk and started walking over to the office door, "Make sure Mummy closes her eyes Kotaro."

"Did you hear that Mummy?" Kotaro asked from the other side of the door, "Daddy says you need to close your eyes."

"Okay sweetie, I've closed them."

"No peeking Mummy, Its a surprise!"

"I wont peak."

"Promise?"

"Yes Kotaro, I promise I wont peak."

"Cross your heart?"

"I cross my heart."

"Pinky promise?"

"Pinky promise too sweetie."

"Are you sure you're not going to peak Mummy?"

"I've already pinky promised haven't I?"

"What about a double promise?"

"Kotaro! Just let Mummy in already. Okay!" Toushiro yelled through the door.


	34. Chapter 34

Thank you for all the lovely comments you left me for Chapter 33, I love reading all your thoughts about the story. Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 34<p>

The Birthday picnic that Toushiro had held for Rangiku had been a very enjoyable event. Long after all the food had been eaten and all the presents unwrapped, they'd talked and talked. Rangiku had been having so much fun, neither Toushiro or Ukitake had wanted to ruin the good mood by saying they needed to go. So it had been a silent agreement between them, that they'd start digging around another day instead.

The next day Ukitake as usual, was paying an early morning visit to Nanao. With Shunsui missing, Ukitake felt responsible for Nanao.

He'd always loved and cared for Nanao as a friend, but in recent years it felt as though a much deeper bond had formed between them. He saw Shunsui not only as his best friend, but also as a brother. Nanao was in a relationship with Shunsui, yet he didn't see her as a sister or a sister-in-law. He'd known Nanao as a young child, seen her grow up in the Eighth, watched her achieve and accomplish her goals. He felt proud of her, almost like a father would.

Ukitake sighed as he strolled through the quiet corridors. He definitely saw Toushiro as his son and Kotaro as his grandson, he was very fond of Rangiku too and cared for her deeply. Yet when it came to Nanao he wasn't sure whether he saw her as a daughter or as a niece.

Seeing her as his niece would be more logical, however Shunsui was his brother and he was going to be having a child with Nanao. Once the child was born then he would be its uncle and he would have a nephew or niece. So logically, he couldn't see Nanao as his niece.

So maybe he did see her as his daughter after all? He wasn't sure. Its not like he'd acted like a father towards her over the years. Being over protective and telling Nanao who she could and couldn't date as she grew up, wasn't exactly his style. Shunsui on the other hand, had done that all the time. He acted more like a father towards her then what he ever did.

Ukitake grimaced, shook his head and decided to kill that train of thought right there.

He cared deeply for Nanao and he would take care of her untill Shunsui returned. Not because he felt he had to, but because he wanted to, and certainly not because he'd labelled her as his daughter or anything else.

When Ukitake reached Nanao's room he tapped lightly on the door, not really expecting her to be awake. Also if she was still asleep, he didn't exactly want to wake her up either. She was supposed to be getting as much rest as possible.

So it came as a little surprise when Nanao responded with a quiet, "Come in."

Ukitake stepped inside and smiled at Nanao, "Good Morning Nanao, I wasn't expecting you to be awake yet."

He automatically glanced over to the bed and saw that it was empty. Nanao was instead sitting in a comfy chair that she'd someone how found the strength to push closer to the window. He wasn't at all surprised to see that she had a book propped open and had been reading. From the looks of it she'd already gotten through three quarters of the impressively thick book. He recognized it as one of the books he'd brought in for her.

Nanao seemed a little jumpy and as soon as she realised it was him, she seemed to relax slightly, "Good Morning Captain Ukitake," she greeted in a quiet voice.

"Are you okay?" He asked politely, "I didn't make you jump did I?"

"A little bit, I thought you were Captain Unohana coming to check up on me," Nanao bookmarked her page then placed the book down on a small table, "I'm not sure whether she would approve of me being awake so early."

"I don't think she would mind too much Nanao," Ukitake smiled and pulled up a spare chair, "Its not as though you've been awake all night reading now, is it?"

Nanao stiffened in her chair and averted her gaze away from him.

Ukitake noticed this, "Nanao," he stood up from his chair and stepped over to hers and crouched down in front. He then reached out a hand to cup her chin and gently turned her gaze to his, "Have you been awake all night reading?"

Nanao sighed and pulled her chin out of his hold, "I couldn't sleep Captain Ukitake," she admitted quietly.

Ukitake tilted his head to one side, "Was there any specific reason why you couldn't sleep? I cant imagine it's because you weren't tired. I can tell from a glance that you look exhausted Nanao."

And just like that Ukitake saw Nanao completely shut down and her face become an expressionless mask, as she retreated once again into her rock hard shell. She turned her face away from him and towards the window instead. Ukitake knew she wasn't admiring the view, she was simply staring off into space as she battled internally with her emotions.

"Nanao," Ukitake rested his hands on her shoulders, "Please listen to me-" he was interrupted by a knock on the door. The door opened slowly and a nurse came bustling in with a tray of breakfast for Nanao.

Having spotted him, the nurse stopped and gave him a bow, "Good Morning Captain Ukitake, I have Lieutenant Ise's breakfast here for her."

Ukitake glanced at Nanao who showed no signs of hearing what'd just been said, instead she just continued to stare off into space. He turned back to the nurse and gave her a dazzling smile, "Could you put it down on the table please, I'll see that she eats it."

"Of course Captain Ukitake," the nurse stepped over to the table and placed the tray down, before backing out of the room with a bow.

Once the door had closed Ukitake returned his attention back to Nanao. He noticed that her shoulders were tensed up and that she appeared to be shivering slightly. He reached for her hand and found that it felt ice cold, "Are you cold Nanao?" He gave her shoulder a gentle nudge.

Nanao flinched slightly, before slowly turning her gaze back to him, "Maybe a little."

Without another word, Ukitake bent down and lifted Nanao into his arms with ease, "Captain Ukitake!" She protested loudly, however her struggles to get free were rather half-hearted.

"Don't argue with me Nanao," Ukitake replied in a firm voice, "You'll feel much warmer in your bed," he stepped over to her bed and placed her down gently, before pulling the covers up to her chest. Nanao's hands came up to wrench the cover off but Ukitake caught them and held them firmly in his, "Nanao," he said, the warning clear in his voice.

She ceased her struggling and let out an exasperated sigh, Ukitake perched himself on the edge of her bed whilst he waited for her to calm down a little. Just a slight struggle like that and it'd tired out her weakened body. Once her breathing had evened out he decided to try again.

"Why couldn't you sleep Nanao?" He asked gently as he ran his hand over her forehead, "Were you feeling restless?" He watched closely for her reactions, "Or did you have a nightmare?" A slight frown formed on her face, "Are you worried about being pregnant or," Ukitake paused, he definitely saw a flicker of something in her eyes, "Or are you missing Shunsui?" He asked, listing what seemed the most obvious problems to him.

Nanao slid her eyes closed and turned her gaze to the side, "Yes," she admitted quietly.

"Yes?" Ukitake repeated with a frown, "To which one?"

Nanao sighed, "All of them," she then returned her gaze to him, before sitting up in her bed.

"Nanao..." Ukitake wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his chest.

"The nightmares are always worst at night," Nanao mumbled into his chest.

"Well that explains why we always seem to find you sleeping during the day," Ukitake ran a hand up and down her back, "Why are you feeling so restless?"

"I don't do so well when I don't have a routine to follow," Nanao shifted in his arms so she could look up at him, "I'm not use to not being busy. All I'm doing is eating and sleeping, I think my brain might explode or implode if I don't start using it again."

Ukitake chuckled, "Is that your way of saying you miss doing your paperwork?"

"No, I just miss doing something productive and I'm fed up of being in here."

"Nanao, resting and getting your health back on track is a productive thing," Ukitake ran his hand over her hair stroking it, feeling slightly amazed that he was actually getting Nanao to talk to him a bit, "Speaking of which," he allowed his hand to drop from her head and he glanced over his shoulder, "Are you going to eat your breakfast? Its going to get cold."

Nanao pulled away from their hug and flopped back down onto the bed again, "I'm not really hungry yet."

Ukitake stood up and stepped over to the table, "Well if you wont eat for yourself, at least eat for the baby," he picked up the tray and brought it over to the bed. Nanao appeared to be struggling to sit up properly, so he placed the tray down on a trolley and then helped her to sit comfortably. Once she was settled he picked the tray up again and rested it carefully on her lap, "Eggs, bacon and toast, tuck in Nanao."

Nanao looked at the huge mound of food and her face went pale, "I'm not used to eating huge amounts of food, so much of the time," she took the fork that Ukitake had handed her and she slowly began to pick at the food.

"I think Retsu just wants to build you back up again Nanao. You really did have us all worried you know," As Nanao continued to eat, Ukitake sought out Unohana's presense and came across it in her office. He brushed his reiatsu up against hers before wrapping it around her like a hug. Their relationship had been feeling a little strained since that night he'd overheard her talking to Toushiro. Yes he'd been a little upset at the time and yes he'd taken it out on Retsu, but that didn't excuse the fact that he'd ignored and avoided her for three days straight. Once she'd fully explained everything to him yesterday, he'd felt slightly better afterwards and he'd proceeded to apologise to her too. But Retsu had also been hurt by his behaviour and now she was the one who wanted a little space.

As he was about to pull his awareness back, he felt her energy flicker in response and then a rush of her calming energy enveloped him. He smiled to himself, it seemed like she'd forgiven him now.

Ukitake returned his attention back to Nanao, who after only eating a few mouthfuls of food seemed to be struggling, "Try not to worry so much Nanao."

Nanao placed her fork down and raised a questioning eyebrow at Ukitake's seemingly random question.

"About being pregnant and having a baby," Ukitake quickly clarified seeing the look on her face, "We're all here for you."

Nanao closed her eyes and a lone tear trailed its way down her cheek.

"Nanao," Ukitake perched himself on the edge of the bed again and rested his hands on her shoulders. Seeing the tear, he wiped it away with a thumb, "What is it?" He asked softly.

Nanao's whole body hitched and a few more tears started to stream down her cheeks.

"Please don't cry Nanao," Ukitake placed his palm against the side of her face and stroked his thumb over her cheek.

"I'm sorry," Nanao gasped.

"For what?" Ukitake asked slightly confused.

"You shouldn't have to see me like this Captain Ukitake," as her hand came up to wipe away at her tears, Ukitake caught it and held it firmly.

"Even strong women such as yourself need to cry sometimes, Nanao," Ukitake spoke in a firm tone, "It doesn't do any good keeping these things bottled up like you have been. We all need to cry sometimes to release the tension. You are by no means weak for succumbing to your emotions. It just means that you've simply reached your limit."

A loud sob shook her body and Nanao leaned forward to bury her face in his chest. The movement sent the breakfast tray on her lap, crashing to the floor with a bang.

"Just let it all out Nanao its okay," Ukitake continued to stroke her hair and run a soothing hand up and down her back, "Just let it all out and you'll feel much better for it."

"Why hasn't Shunsui come to visit me yet?" She cried out between sobs, "Has something happened to him?"

"Shhh, its okay," Ukitake replied soothingly.

"You say you're all here for me," another sob shook her body, "But the one person I need."

"I know Nanao," Ukitake spoke softly in her ear, "I understand."

"Where is he Captain Ukitake?" Nanao asked in a pained voice, "Where is he?"

Ukitake slid his eyes closed and remained quiet.

"Whenever I've tried to ask Rangiku or Captain Unohana," Nanao gasped as another sob caught in her throat, "They change the subject."

Ukitake felt momentarily torn. Should he tell Nanao to put her out of her misery, or don't tell her and continue on trying to protect her feelings. When he'd been discussing it with Rangiku and Unohana, they'd agreed to keep quiet for a bit in the hopes that Shunsui would show up eventually. Why needlessly cause Nanao further grief. He hadn't agreed personally with the decision, but he did acknowledge that Nanao's emotional condition was a bit questionable.

Ukitake sighed, he knew Unohana wouldn't approve of what he was about to do, "The reason why nobody has told you where Shunsui is," he paused when he felt Nanao tense up in his arms, "Is because neither of us know where he is."

"What do you me-"

"Shhh," Ukitake soothed, "Just listen to what I have to say."

"Okay."

"That day you walked out during the meeting and Shunsui came after you," Ukitake began in a low voice, "The Head-Captain issued Toushiro with the orders to arrest and detain both you and Shunsui. Naturally Retsu, Toushiro, Rangiku and myself rallied to get you both to the Fourth to help delay the arrest."

Nanao lifted her hands up against Ukitake's chest and pushed herself away from him, "Please tell me Shunsui didn't do something stupid!"

"The Head-Captain was growing impatient and before long he'd ordered Komamura to assist Toushiro in bringing you both in. However we all felt that you were in no fit state, so Retsu placed you in a mini coma so you could stay put. Komamura had been given a specific order from the Head-Captain that he needed to see with his own eyes that you were actually incapacitated. We wanted to do the same thing with Shunsui, but he refused to go along with it. He chose instead to go to the First under his own free will to speak with the Head-Captain and to try and straighten things out with him."

"How many days ago was that?" Nanao asked looking agitated.

"Six," Ukitake took a small breath and continued, "We wouldn't let him go alone. Retsu, Toushiro and myself accompanied him."

"What happened whilst you were there?"

"We all pretty much got chewed up and spat out by the Head-Captain. Toushiro was first, then me, followed by Retsu."

"And Shunsui?" Nanao demanded, "What happened to him?"

"We don't know Nanao," Ukitake grimaced when he saw Nanao's face pale, "Thats the last time any of us saw him," he sighed then added, "But I do know one thing."

"What is it?"

"Your warrant of arrest has been revoked, so I assume Shunsui must have talked the Head-Captain around somehow. We just don't know what he's said or done to achieve that though."

"And now he's vanished."

"Nanao I promise you, I will do everything in my power to find out what's happened to him. I will find him and make sure he gets back home to you."

Nanao sniffed and wiped at her eyes again, "Do you even know where to begin?"

"Me and Toushiro are going to go by a process of elimination," Ukitake replied, "We're going to have to do some discreet digging around. But we will find him."

They fell into silence before Ukitake sighed and added, "Nanao, will you promise me one thing?"

"What?" Nanao asked in a croaky voice.

"Will you please promise me that you will get better again. When Shunsui comes back, he'll rip my limbs off one by one if he sees you looking all ill like you are. He'll totally blame it one me you know."

Nanao met his gaze and said, "If he comes back."

"He will," Ukitake replied with determination, "I will make sure of of it," he pulled her into another hug and rested his chin on the top of her head.

They sat like that in silence for a long time, Nanao crying silently into his chest while he sat there patiently offering her comfort. They were both so wrapped up in their own thoughts, that neither of them heard the quiet approach of footsteps or the door being gently opened.

It was only when another weight settled on the other side of the bed and another pair of arms wrapped around Nanao, did they noticed.

Ukitake opened his eyes and saw a flash of a fiery orange mane, "Rangiku." He also felt another pair of hands settle on his shoulders. Craning his neck he glanced above him and saw Unohana smiling back at him, "Retsu."

"Can I speak to you outside please?" She asked before gliding away from the bed, "I'm sure Rangiku will look after Nanao for a moment.

He glanced back at Rangiku who gave him a small smile and a nod.

"Nanao I'm just popping outside for a moment," he started to disentangle himself from her, "Rangiku will stay with you."

Nanao loosened her grip on him and immediately latched onto Rangiku instead. Her eyes were still pouring with tears despite her not making any sound.

Ukitake got to his feet and followed Unohana outside.

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><p>As Toushiro had been walking through the streets of the Seireitei, Kotaro had kept up his constant stream of questions. Toushiro had tuned him out ages ago, yet his son was in a full on chatterbox mode and was still talking despite the fact that he wasn't particularly listening.<p>

He'd taken Kotaro to work with him this morning, because he knew Rangiku would be visiting Nanao in the Fourth. It'd been bit of a surprise when a hell butterfly had fluttered through the window. Rangiku had sent it asking if he could come to the Fourth as soon as possible. She hadn't said much, just that she needed to talk to him along with Ukitake and Unohana.

He sighed and stepped up the pace, he could only assume that it was something to do with Nanao.

"Daddy! Wait for me!" Kotaro called from behind him.

He paused and glanced over his shoulder to see Kotaro running to catch up, "Keep up Kotaro."

"But you walk so fast!" he protested.

Once Kotaro had caught up, Toushiro picked him up and planted him on his shoulders, "Hold on now."

"I can walk Daddy!" Kotaro pointed out as he wriggled his legs to be put down.

"The sooner you learn to shunpo the better," Toushiro muttered under his breath.

"What did you say Daddy?" Kotaro tried to peer down at him and almost unbalanced himself. Toushiro reached up and latched onto his ankles.

"Will you sit still up there Kotaro," Toushiro admonished, "You nearly fell off."

"Where are we going Daddy?"

"You'll see when we get there."

"Where is there?"

"Please be quiet," Toushiro sighed sounding a little exasperated.

"Is Daddy feeling irritated today?"

"A little."

"Why?"

"I just am," Toushiro replied fighting with himself not to scowl.

"Are you feeling unwell Daddy?"

"No."

"Then why are you being grumpy?"

"I'm not being grumpy."

"You are a little bit."

"Kotaro!" Toushiro paused in his walking and took a calming breath, "Please be quiet."

Kotaro managed to stay silent for two seconds before...

"Does Daddy have a headache today?" Kotaro whispered into his ear.

Toushiro gritted his teeth and counted to ten, "Hold on tightly Kotaro," he tightened his hold on Kotaro's legs. Walking was taking too long. Once he felt Kotaro grip his ears Toushiro stepped into Shunpo.

A few minutes later he was touching down outside the Fourth. There was a few moments of blissful silence, before Kotaro perked up once again, "We're at the Fourth!"

"Yes we are."

"Why are we here Daddy? Are you ill? Oh! Will we see Gran-Gran? Mummy's visiting Auntie Nan-nan, can we see her too?"

"Kotaro," Toushiro cut through his sons constant questioning.

"What is it Daddy?"

Toushiro sighed, he couldn't begrudge his son for being curious and inquisitive. Wasn't he the same as a child? "Lets play a game."

Kotaro's legs kicked out from his shoulders, "I love games! What do you want to play Daddy?"

"How about a challenge."

Kotaro clapped his hands together excitedly, "I love challenges!"

"Lets see then," Toushiro said in a low voice, "Lets play 'See who can keep the quietest for the longest amount of time!' The first person to talk loses okay?"

Kotaro didn't answer right away.

"Okay little man?"

"Yay I won! Daddy you just spoke so that means I'm the winner!"

"W..what! We haven't even started yet!" Toushiro growled out in annoyance.

"Then why did you speak up?" Kotaro asked innocently.

"Just be quiet Kotaro, okay? Just until we get to Mummy, can you manage that?"

"Okay, all you have to do is ask!" Kotaro patted him playfully on his head, "I promise I'll be quiet Daddy."

Toushiro lifted his hand to pinch the bridge of his nose, "Right then."

He walked through the main entrance of the Fourth and felt a deep sense of deja vu. It seemed like he'd been in here quite a lot recently. If it wasn't one thing, it was another. He was debating whether or not he should be polite and ask one of the nurses on duty, for Unohana's whereabouts but decided against it. He could feel her presense in her office, along with Ukitake and Rangiku. Just as he'd expected.

True to his word, Kotaro had been sitting quietly on his shoulders not making a sound. As Toushiro neared Unohana's office he felt Kotaro tense up with excitement, he paused in his walking and lifted Kotaro off his shoulders and placed him down on his feet, "Kotaro."

"What is it Daddy?"

"Your mum asked me to come here because she, along with Ukitake and Unohana need to discuss something with me. I know you get excited about seeing them, but could you please contain your enthusiasm until after they've finished telling me, what they want to tell me?"

"Okay," Kotaro replied sounding a little deflated.

"Thank you, and it wont be for long," Toushiro crouched down in front of him and brushed Kotaro's hair out of his eyes, "Here, I brought a book for you to read whilst we're all talking,"

Toushiro straightened up and placed his hand between Kotaro's shoulders to guide him the rest of the way. As he reached Unohana's office door, before he'd even raised his fist to knock, the door opened and Unohana invited him in.

"Good Morning Toushiro," Ukitake greeted as he stepped into the office. Today the majority of Ukitake's hair was white, which Toushiro was more accustomed to seeing. But he did notice a few silvery grey strands weaving through his locks along with an odd black strand here and there. Maybe it was beginning to settle down now? A week ago it'd been rapidly alternating between white and black with all the different shades of grey in between.

"Ukitake," he greeted, noticing that Kotaro had already padded over to him and plonked himself down in Ukitake's lap.

"Have a seat Toushiro," Unohana instructed gently from her seat behind her desk.

He stepped over and sat down next to Rangiku, who smiled at him and reached for his hand. Once he'd settled himself, he glanced at them all before asking, "So what did you want to discuss with me?"

"Toushiro," Unohana began by clearing her throat, "When Juushiro visited Nanao a little while ago, he managed to get her to open up a little bit."

"Did you really?" Toushiro glanced at Ukitake surprised. Rangiku had told him enough times during the week about how worried she'd been feeling because Nanao wouldn't even speak to her, they were best friends after all.

Ukitake nodded, "Its clear she's fed up of being in here, you can tell she's growing restless. She's not getting the rest she needs either."

"Hmm well if that's the case," Toushiro folded his arms across his chest, "Cant you just send her home?" He asked glancing at Unohana.

"Normally I wouldn't hesitate to send a patient home if it would aid in a faster recovery for them," Unohana clasped her hands together in her lap.

Toushiro suspected there was a 'but' on the way.

"But I seriously doubt that Nanao could look after herself sufficiently enough and see to her basic needs. She needs someone to make sure she gets the right amount of rest and to ensure that she's eating a sufficient amount of food. She cant afford to go off the rails with her health at this point, especially with a baby on its way. With Shunsui gone.."

Kotaro who'd been keeping very quiet as promised perked up, "Auntie Nan-nan's going to have a baby?"

"Quiet Kotaro," Toushiro warned before getting to his feet and pacing "I understand the situation. The point is, what are you going to do about it?"

"Toshi, we've been discussing it for the last hour," Rangiku spoke up in an oddly sombre voice, "Nanao's recovery is going to take a lot longer if she remains here in the Fourth. Its just the wrong environment for her. We all know she cant be left alone, someone needs to keep an eye on her. So therefore the only viable option we have, is if she stays with someone until we can find, locate and get Shunsui back home to her."

Toushiro quirked an eyebrow, "That would be the most logical course of action given the situation."

"Captain Unohana would gladly let Nanao live with her, however due to the hours she spends here at the Fourth," Rangiku continued.

Toushiro shook his head, "It wouldn't be practical."

"No it wouldn't," Rangiku agreed, "Captain Ukitake would also be happy to take her in-"

"But," Toushiro interrupted, "We know he's going to be busy digging around and trying to find out what's happened to Shunsui. Which I've already agreed to help him with. So lets stop dancing around the subject Rangiku and just ask me the one question you want to ask me. Because we all know that's the reason why you've asked me to come here in the first place."

"Toshi, is it okay with you if Nanao comes and lives with us for a little while? She's my best friend and she needs me. I know what it feels like to be pregnant, and I understand how she's feeling. I felt the same way when I was pregnant and you were unconscious in the Fourth for three months. If it wasn't for my friends back then, I don't know how I would've coped alone."

Toushiro sighed and paused in his pacing, he turned and looked Rangiku straight in the eye, "You don't need to send me on a guilt trip Rangiku. As soon as Unohana mentioned about wanting to discharge Nanao and her needing someone to keep an eye on her, I already knew where this was going."

"Toshi.."

"Its fine Rangiku, I don't have a problem with it," Toushiro unfolded his arms and rested his hands on the back of Rangiku's chair, "Nanao needs her best friend and seeing as you're at home most days with little man anyway, its the most logical course of action."

"See that's what I thought," Rangiku agreed, "I'll be at home anyway because of Kotaro. Our house is big enough to allow Nanao the space and privacy she'll need. Yet its not too big, so we can easily keep an eye on her. The guest room is quite far away from the main living areas so it shouldn't be too noisy for her, so she'll be able to get the rest she needs. Then she'll be eating meals with us, so we can ensure she'll be eating properly. Its a win win situation for all."

"You've really put a lot of thought into this, haven't you?" Toushiro smirked.

"Well I honestly thought that it may have taken a well planned out argument to convince you to say yes. I had no idea you would be this easily agreeable."

"Its not like you're trying to convince me to let you have a dog or anything," Toushiro pointed out, "I'm fine with this Rangiku. The fact of the matter is, Nanao needs our help. I'm glad you consulted with me first, but really I have no issues with your decision this time around."

"Oh thank you Toshi!" Rangiku leapt up from her chair and launched herself at him, engulfing him in a suffocating hug, "Thank you so much my lil Toushi-pops."

Hearing Rangiku's comment, Ukitake started choking on his tea as he tried not to laugh. Unohana was busy patting Ukitake's back so he wouldn't choke to death, while Toushiro was struggling to free himself from Rangiku's death grip. Amongst all the chaos, neither of them noticed that Kotaro had slid off Ukitake's lap and had quietly sneaked out of the office door.


	35. Chapter 35

Hello. Author's notes at the bottom.

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 35<p>

A few more days had passed by and as they entered October, it'd been like a slap in the face at just how quickly Kotaro's Birthday was approaching. This time five years ago Toushiro had been in a similar situation, the only difference being he'd been constantly keeping an eye on Rangiku for even the slightest sign of her going into labour. They still had two weeks to go before it was Kotaro's actual Birthday, but he and Rangiku seriously needed to think about slipping off to the World of the Living for a day trip to pick Kotaro a nice present.

Hell they hadn't even had the time to sit down and discuss exactly what they were going to get him this year. Toushiro knew Rangiku was probably planning on something big, considering she saw turning five as a milestone.

As he sat at the kitchen table drinking his morning coffee and eating the breakfast muffins Rangiku had made him, he allowed his mind to wonder. He wasn't thinking about anything in specific, just allowing his mind to slowly open up for the day.

He felt a pair of hands land on his shoulders. Tilting his head back he saw Rangiku smiling down at him, "Good Morning," he greeted, his eyes slid closed as she lowered her lips to his.

"Morning," she cooed back wrapping her arms around his shoulders, "I see you found breakfast all right."

Toushiro chuckled, "You're little note was very subtle," Rangiku manoeuvred herself and slid comfortable onto his lap, capturing his lips once again.

Once they broke the kiss Toushiro sighed softly and threaded his arms around Rangiku's waist.

"What were you thinking of?" Rangiku asked breaking the silence.

"Hmm?" Toushiro mumbled, "Not much really, although I was thinking we really should start thinking about sneaking off to a certain place, for a certain thing, for a certain someone, whose certain day is quickly approaching," he replied in secret code as he heard the 'Certain Someone' emerging from the bathroom, "Have you had any ideas yet?"

"A few," Rangiku replied in a soft tone.

"Anything concrete?"

"Not yet."

"Typical," Toushiro chuckled.

"What are you talking about?" Kotaro's voice came from behind, which made them both jump. He could be so light on his feet when he wanted to be. And quick.

"Oh sweetie!" I wish you wouldn't do that!" Rangiku exclaimed as she discreetly tried to readjust herself. Toushiro just chuckled knowing exactly what'd happened.

Rangiku slapped him playfully on his thigh, "You can keep quiet too."

"I wasn't even going to say anything," he replied struggling to hide the smirk on his face.

"No but you were thinking something," Rangiku pulled her attention away from him and instead glanced down to Kotaro, "Sweetie! What are you doing!" She then jumped off Toushiro's lap and reached her hands out to Kotaro.

Toushiro craned his neck to look back at Kotaro. What he saw had him swivelling around in his chair a second later. Kotaro was standing before them with shaving foam all over his face, brandishing Toushiro's razor with a grin on his face, "Kotaro! What are you doing with that!" He asked echoing Rangiku's earlier comment, who had already carefully taken the razor out of his hand.

"I'm shaving," he smiled back at them.

"Why?" They both answered at the same time.

"I saw a hair," Kotaro pointed at his cheek, "Right there, so I need to shave just like Daddy."

Toushiro latched onto Kotaro's wrist and pulled him closer, "Where let me see."

"Right there!" Kotaro touched his cheek where he thought he saw the hair and managed to get shaving foam all over his fingers. He wiggled his fingers trying to shake it off, then gave up and discreetly wiped them on Toushiro's sleeve.

"Hey not on my uniform little man," Toushiro rebuked before squinting his eyes to look at Kotaro's cheek. Sure enough he saw a small fine hair dusting Kotaro's cheek, however it wasn't the type of hair that Kotaro thought it was. Toushiro swiped a finger over it, and it easily came away as it stuck to the foam on his finger. Toushiro held it up to Kotaro's eye so he could see, "Its an eyelash Kotaro."

"Oh," Kotaro pouted back.

Rangiku broke out into hysterical laughter and Toushiro got to his feet and hoisted Kotaro over his shoulder, "Come on, lets get you cleaned up little man."

"But Daddy!" Kotaro protested.

"But nothing," Toushiro replied good naturedly as he carried a squirming Kotaro back to the bathroom, "You shouldn't be touching my shaving stuff, and you certainly shouldn't be needing to use it any time soon."

Rangiku clutched at her aching ribs and shook her head, those two were going to be the death of her.

Once Toushiro had emerged from the bathroom again, followed by a much cleaner Kotaro. He stepped back into the kitchen to find Rangiku washing up the breakfast pots. He stepped over to her and planted a kiss on her cheek, "I need to get going, I'll see you later on."

"Have fun at work," Rangiku replied flicking soap bubbles at him.

"Are you all ready for later?"

"Nearly, I still have a few things to do but everything will be ready for when Nanao arrives."

"Good, I'll see you later then," he pecked her on her cheek before stepping away and picking up Hyourimaru, "See you later little man, I'm off to work now."

Kotaro jumped to his feet and dashed over to him, "I'm coming too Daddy!"

"No not today Kotaro, I need you to stay here and help Mummy get things ready for Nanao's arrival."

Kotaro pouted back at him, "But I'm your little helper!"

"I know little man, but today I need you to stay here and help your Mum," Toushiro replied firmly. Kotaro folded his arms across his chest and scowled. Toushiro raised an eyebrow, was that how he looked at times? "Besides, I'm not going to be in the office today and where I'm going is a restricted area. Captains only I'm afraid."

Kotaro's eyes lit up and the scowl melted away, "Where? Where Daddy?"

Toushiro sighed, "Just help your Mum today, okay?"

"Ow," Kotaro complained before stalking off in the direction of his bedroom.

Once they'd heard Kotaro's door slam, Toushiro turned to Rangiku and saw the worried look on her face, "Try not to worry Rangiku, I'll be careful."

"If you get caught," she started to protest.

"I wont and besides, as a Captain I have authorization to be there. Admittedly not many Captains feel the need to go there. But if it makes you feel any better, Ukitake will be there with me."

"It doesn't make me feel any better," Rangiku replied stubbornly, "Why do you have to go sneaking around? Cant you just approach the Head-Captain and enquire about Shunsui's whereabouts?"

"Rangiku, you didn't see how angry the Head-Captain was that night," Toushiro sighed, "Neither Ukitake or myself think the direct approach would be wise at this stage."

Rangiku held up her hand, "I don't want to argue with you. Just go off to work and do whatever you need to do."

"Rangiku.."

"Just promise me you wont get yourself into any awkward situations."

"I'll try not to," he leaned in and planted a kiss on her lips, "I'll be at the Eighth this morning and Ukitake's going to join me after he's dropped Nanao off here."

Rangiku brightened up slightly, "I'm glad Captain Unohana decided to discharge her today."

"I'll see you later Rangiku," he replied before heading out the door.

"Sure," Rangiku whispered after he'd left, "Just be careful."

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><p>At the Fourth Division, Unohana was giving Nanao one final check up before she officially discharged her from her care. Truth be told, she had felt a little worried at first about discharging her so soon. But she trusted both Toushiro and Rangiku and knew that Nanao would be in good hands. Then there was Kotaro. The day they'd asked Toushiro to come to the Fourth, and Kotaro had managed to slip away. They'd quickly located him and found that he'd naturally gone to see his Auntie.<p>

When they'd reached Nanao's room it was to find her fast asleep and cuddling Kotaro in her arms, with a peaceful expression on her face while Kotaro was sat there reading her a story from his book. They'd all felt his soothing energy gently swirling from him.

It was in that moment that they all realised having Nanao temporarily move in with the Hitsugaya's would be a very good thing for her indeed.

Also Unohana was hoping that by having Nanao spend some time with Kotaro, then just maybe she might start taking an interest in her own pregnancy. So far Nanao hadn't shown any of the usual reactions one would exhibit on finding out that they were pregnant. It didn't seem as though it'd fully sunk into her yet.

Unohana expected it was because of the stress she'd been experiencing and also the upset she was feeling from Shunsui's absence.

"Well your blood pressure has lowered to an acceptable level Nanao, and it seems as if your spiritual pressure has risen slightly. Although it is still a bit on the low side, but those tablets I've prescribe for you should help out with that."

Nanao opened her eyes and nodded but made no comment.

"Physically you're doing a lot better now," Unohana stepped around the bed and picked up a clipboard, "All that I ask, is that you carry on eating regular nutritious meals and to make sure that you get plenty of rest."

Nanao remained quiet, staring straight ahead.

"Nanao," Unohana perched herself on the edge of the bed and rested her hand over Nanao's, "I would also suggest that you try and meditate at least twice a day. It will help you to re-centre yourself emotionally. Also I think it will help you to connect with your baby and bring it a sense of calm."

Unohana had been examining Nanao daily and keeping a close eye on the ball of unsettled energy swirling away in her stomach. So far it'd been impossible to figure out the basics like what gender it may be and how far along in the pregnancy Nanao was. Although Unohana estimated Nanao was about a month and a half pregnant. If that was the case, then Nanao would be due in the Spring, during April sometime. She realised with a small smile how thrilled Shunsui would be about that. He was always saying the best things bloomed in Spring, he loved it when the cherry blossoms came out.

"I would also keep trying that technique I taught you. Its the most natural way to connect with the baby and you'll know instantly what its gender will be."

Nanao turned her gaze to Unohana, "I tried it again last night."

Unohana smiled, "Any luck?"

Nanao shook her head, "It felt the same as before, unsettled and undecided. I thought for a moment it felt like a boy. But then the energy shifted and it felt like a girl. Then it felt as though everything went all cloudy again."

"Hmm," Unohana stood up, "You don't mind if I take another look do you?"

Nanao gave Unohana her permission and settled back into her pillow as Unohana's hand lit up with a soft blue kido.

After several long minutes Unohana flicked her wrist and the blue kido vanished, "I think it may be that, your reiatsu is still unsettled and its taking time to come into harmony with Shunsui's reiatsu and the baby's. I reckon we'll know more when you come in for your first scan."

"When will that be Captain Unohana?"

Unohana smiled, it seemed as though Nanao was slowly starting to accept that she was pregnant. This was turning out to be the longest conversation they'd had on the topic so far. Maybe she was making progress after all. With Nanao being so reserved all the time, it really was hard to tell at times.

"It wont be for some time yet, but I will set aside an appointment for you," Unohana offered Nanao her hand and helped her to sit up.

"Thank you Captain Unohana," Nanao replied in a quiet voice.

"There's just one more thing I'd like to discuss with you before I hand you over to Juushiro," Unohana spoke in a soft, motherly tone, "Its quite standard for pregnancy, but with you, especially so."

"You don't want me to do any kido, do you?" Nanao answered calmly.

"That's right Nanao, it would be very dangerous for you to do so," Unohana's voice was soft, but had a serious edge to it.

"I guessed as much since my reiatsu is so unstable and I've had a few spells backfire on me before," Nanao held her main kido hand up and flexed her fingers. Unohana had done a wonderful job healing her hands and wrists, there was no sign of scarring. However when she flexed them, they still felt stiff and sore.

"Nanao, it will be dangerous for you to do so," Unohana warned again, "Its not so much a danger to you, but more so towards your baby. Any reiatsu you have needs to go towards supporting the baby's growth. If you use it for anything else and use too much of it, the baby wont be getting the vital supply it needs. If it gets cut off again it will begin to play up again. Only this time we cant guarantee Shunsui being here to feed the baby his own reiatsu. You need to be very careful."

Nanao glanced up and looked at Unohana in the eye, "I understand Captain Unohana."

"I know you do," Unohana smiled warmly and patted Nanao's hand, "Well I cant think of any other reason to keep you here any longer. I believe Juushiro's waiting outside with a clean set of clothes for you to leave in. I've also been informed by Rangiku that she's already been over to your house to collect anything you shall need while staying with her. So all you need to do is sign the discharge form, get dressed and you're free to go."

"Thank you," Nanao replied gratefully, although there was a hint of sadness behind her words.

"Don't you worry about a thing Nanao," Unohana stroked Nanao's hair. Since Nanao had been admitted to the Fourth, she'd worn her hair down all the time. Partly because her hair clip got destroyed along with her glasses. At least she'd been able to prescribe her with a new pair of glasses. "You'll be fine with Rangiku, Toushiro and Kotaro, they'll take good care of you. Don't worry about Shunsui either. I know it will be hard not to, but Juushiro's going to everything he can to find him and get him back to you, okay?"

Nanao nodded and Unohana pulled her into a gentle hug, "I'll also stop by once a week for a check up too."

There was a light tap on the door and after Unohana had told the person to come in, it opened slowly and Ukitake stepped into the room.

Unohana stood up and glided over to him, "She's all yours now Juushiro, see that she gets to the Tenth safely will you."

"Of course Retsu," Ukitake smiled back at her before she walked out the door.

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><p>Toushiro had been at the Eighth for quite awhile. Before he'd headed over to Nanao and Shunsui's shared office, he'd made the rounds to check over the Eighths members to see that they were functioning okay without their leaders present.<p>

They all seemed to be doing okay and several people had asked him if he knew how Shunsui and Nanao were doing. The whole Division were aware of their leaders absence, and seemed to be under the impression that Nanao was in the Fourth on sick leave and that Shunsui was watching over her. They weren't completely wrong in their assumptions, however Toushiro saw no reason to correct them.

Arriving at the office Toushiro slid the door open and stepped inside, expecting to find mountains of paperwork stacked up in any available space. From what Rangiku had told him, the last time she'd been here she could hardly walk inside without knocking something over. So as he glanced around the office, it was understandable that he felt somewhat confused.

The office was completely cleared of all paperwork. There was nothing. Not even a lone order form for something or the other. Not even a stray report that needed to be read and signed.

Just what was going on here? Even Ukitake had seen the monstrous piles of paperwork for himself. Yet as Toushiro stood there glancing at the tidy office, he just couldn't comprehend where it'd all gone.

He sidled over to Shunsui's desk and started routing through the drawers looking for any sort of clue. All he came across were several bottles of untouched sake. Various life like doodles of Nanao sitting at her desk working, and scrap after scrap of paper, all with short love poems scribbled on them and several declarations of love.

Toushiro sighed and slammed the drawers shut. Of course he wouldn't find anything in Shunsui's desk. It was Nanao who ran the office and knew of anything and everything to do with the administration work.

He swept over to her desk and pulled open the top drawer. Nanao's drawers were much more organized then Shunsui's and everything seemed to have a specific place and purpose. Just as Toushiro expected. It seemed Nanao had a lot in common with him when it came to office work and organization.

Unfortunately though, he found nothing of interest or any indications of the paperworks whereabouts either. He closed the drawer and decided he'd head back to the Tenth. As he stepped over to the door he saw a flash of white out the corner of his eye and turned towards the coffee table.

On the floor was a lone piece of paper that had come to rest just under the table. He stepped over and plucked it off the floor. Bringing it up to his eye level he saw that it was an official notification from the First Division. It stated that any and all paperwork requiring attention from the Eighth Division, was to be transferred and redirected back towards the First Division.

Toushiro frowned. That certainly was a strange notification. Had Shunsui personally written it and the paper he'd written it on he'd acquired from the First. He was one for winding the Head-Captain up after all. He shook his head, no that wouldn't make sense.

Looking closer at the letter, he scanned his eyes further down the document until he came to where a signature or a stamp was usually present. Both were absent however a small code had been printed in the signature box. CO1STD – HCGSY.

It was easy to decipher, CO Courtesy of, 1STD First Division, HCGSY Head-Captain Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto.

The Head-Captain had issued this notification personally. Usually for notices or orders coming from the First, it would be one of the Head-Captains seated offices who dealt with orders such as this.

The plan for today was to sort through and pick up the paperwork that was urgent and required immediately attention. Then he and Ukitake were planning on paying a visit to the Maggots Nest, to see if Shunsui had happened to have been placed down there. It seemed like a logical move on the Head-Captains part, taking into account at just how angry he'd been. But after seeing this notification and no paperwork, Toushiro couldn't help but think that maybe their original assumptions were incorrect.

Toushiro sighed and pocketed the note. As he walked out the office door deciding to head back to the Tenth, Rangiku's words came back to him.

_'Why do you have to go sneaking around? Cant you just approach the Head-Captain and enquire about Shunsui's whereabouts?'_

Toushiro reached his hand up to scratch the back of his head as he thought about it. Maybe he and Ukitake had been going about this all wrong, maybe Rangiku's suggestion would be the better course of action.

He sent his awareness over towards the Tenth and felt Rangiku and Kotaro, along with Ukitake and Nanao. He summoned a hell butterfly and sent it on its way, letting Ukitake know to meet him in his office instead.

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><p>"I've got your hairbrush. Your toothbrush... Sweetie can you pop this into the bathroom please," Rangiku asked as she handed the toothbrush to Kotaro.<p>

Kotaro jumped off Nanao's lap, grabbed the toothbrush and toddled out of the guest room.

Rangiku retuned to unpacking the fairly large bag of stuff she'd acquired from Shunsui and Nanao's home a few days prior. She pulled out a warm dressing gown and draped it over Nanao's lap, "Now where are those slippers."

"Rangiku, are you sure you don't want any help?" Nanao asked as she saw her clothes piling up on the bed next to her.

"Absolutely not! You're my guest and I'm suppose to be looking after you," Rangiku stepped over to a wall and slid a panel to one side revealing an inbuilt wardrobe. She pulled a few hangers forward and began hanging up Nanao's clothes, "Besides, Captain Unohana specifically told me, not to let you over exert yourself. You need to rest Nanao."

Kotaro returned a few seconds later and promptly climbed back onto the bed and settled himself once again on Nanao's lap, "Does Mummy need any more help?"

"Not just yet sweetie," Rangiku ruffled his hair before returning to the bag, "Now where is that nightie?" She mumbled as she rummaged through the bag, "Ah ha!" She pulled the nightie out of the bag and placed it over the dressing gown which Nanao had placed to one side, "Oh and look, I found a spare hair clip. I thought you could use it since your other one got destroyed."

Rangiku passed Nanao the clip and watched as Nanao ran the clip through her fingers. Just as she'd expected, it was one of Nanao's 'special' hair clips which she'd happened to have found in a drawer along with a few other special items. Rangiku had no doubt in her mind that those things, along with the hair clip were all presents from Shunsui. The hair clip was a black wooden one with beautifully hand painted cherry blossom petals decorating it. Rangiku had a sneaky suspicion that maybe Shunsui had been the one who had painted them on.

"That's pretty Auntie Nan-nan," Kotaro commented after seeing the hair clip too.

"Its my favourite one Kota-kun," Nanao replied softly.

Rangiku could have sworn she saw one corner of Nanao's mouth lift slightly in a half smile. She turned away from her friend and busied herself with putting the rest of Nanao's things away.

"Did Uncle Shun-shun give it to you?" Kotaro asked curiously.

"Yes he did," Nanao hesitated slightly before adding, "It was the first serious gift he gave to me, and the first one I actually liked."

Rangiku was glad that her back was to Nanao. If her friend had seen the massive grin on her face she would've been blasted by kido. She knew exactly what Nanao meant by 'The first serious gift.' Before then Shunsui had plagued Nanao with gifts of tasteless lingerie and all sorts of embarrassing gifts. Both Ukitake and herself had warned Shunsui that if he wanted to seriously pursue Nanao, then he would have to start being serious with his choice of gifts. Thank goodness he'd listened to them in the end.

Rangiku listened as Kotaro chatted away to Nanao, as she finished placing the last few of Nanao's belongings away. Sliding the wardrobe door closed, she turned on her heel and surveyed the room, "All done, but I cant help but think that something is missing."

Kotaro glanced around the room and his face suddenly lit up when his eyes landed on a pile of books stacked up on the bedside table, "I know Mummy! Auntie Nan-nan will need a lamp so she can read her books!"

"You're right, well spotted," Rangiku smiled warmly at Kotaro, "I think there's a spare one in Daddy's study."

"I'll get it," Kotaro offered and slid off Nanao's lap again and bounded out the door, before Rangiku could even say another word.

"You don't have to go through so much trouble for me Rangiku."

"Its no trouble at all Nanao," Rangiku stepped over to the bed and flopped down onto it, she then threw her arm around Nanao's shoulder, "I know there's no place like home, but I do want you to feel as comfortable as possible whilst you're here. Besides I know what you're like."

"Meaning?"

"I know your favourite way to relax is with a good book," Rangiku shrugged her shoulders, "And I suspect you'll be doing plenty of reading. So really its no bother at all to bring a lamp in for you."

Nanao rested her head against Rangiku's shoulder and slid her eyes closed, "Thank you," she replied through a yawn.

"Are you feeling tired?" Rangiku asked noticing the sleepiness that'd come over Nanao.

"A little bit I guess," Nanao answered honestly.

"MUMMY!" Kotaro shouted down the hallway, "I CANT FIND IT!"

"I'LL BE RIGHT THERE SWEETIE," she shouted back, "Would you like a cup of tea? I sure could use one too."

"Yes please, tea sounds great," Nanao mumbled sleepily against her shoulder.

"Okay, well while I do that," Rangiku got to her feet, "Why don't you put your bed clothes on and make yourself comfy. I wont be too long."

"Sure okay."

Rangiku smiled and walked out the bedroom and headed for Toushiro's study. She found Kotaro rooting through a cupboard trying to locate the lamp, which was actually sitting on Toushiro's desk where it was suppose to be.

"Okay sweetie I have another job for you," she called to get his attention.

Kotaro wiggled out of the cupboard and bounded over to her, wrapping his arms around her legs, "What is it Mummy?"

"Can you pop into the kitchen for me and get out two cups, a beaker and some cookies please."

Kotaro's face lit up, "We're allowed cookies?"

"Yes sweetie," Rangiku bent down and planted a kiss on his forehead, "You've earned them today."

Kotaro grinned and rushed out of the room, happy to comply with that order.

Rangiku picked up the lamp and headed back to Nanao's room, she tapped lightly on the door expecting Nanao to answer. When she received no reply she cracked the door open slowly and peered inside.

She could see that Nanao had flopped over and was lying on her side, her back towards the door. Rangiku stepped around the bed and saw that during the short space of time she'd been in the other room, Nanao had crashed out and fallen asleep.

Rangiku smiled and placed the lamp down beside the bed. She then gently pulled off Nanao's glasses and placed them next to the stack of books. She picked up the night clothes she'd handed to Nanao and placed those in the chair, before stepping over to a set of drawers and pulling out a blanket.

She settled the blanket over Nanao and then walked quietly out of the room, with a small pleased smile on her face.

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><p>Hello Everybody. I would like to say Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed the last chapter. You're support means a lot to me and it always brightens my day when someone leaves a review. I dont always have the time to reply personally to the reviews left, but please know that each and everyone is appriciated.<p>

Back at the end of Chapter 11, I remember asking you all for suggestions on what name or phrase Nanao could use when addressing Kotaro. I had several suggestions, however there was one in particular that stood out from them all and I instantly started using it in my head without much thought. It just fit so well. So Thank you very much to Akai-Miko with her suggestion of Kota-kun. I love the name so much and it fits wonderfully :) If you squint, you'll see that I've used it for the first time in this chapter ^_^

Now after all the doom and gloom of the previous chapters, we are now heading towards all the much needed fluff and all the nice scenes I've had planned for a long time. Yes sadly STWOY is nearing the end =( Still quite a few chapters to go yet, but my mind is always 5-10 chapters ahead of what I've actually written. My mind is currently going over the Hitsugaya's trip and a certain scene which I shall not mention here.

But dont despair, I've already got 2-3 ideas already for fresh new stories, along with several one shots. Plus a certain idea I had after seeing pictures of Hollow Shunsui, Ukitake and Toushiro is feeling very appealing at the moment.

See you all next chapter, apologies for rambling on so much, as always all comments and feedback are welcome.


	36. Chapter 36

Hello Everyone, I finally got to update the story. I've had the frustrating combination of being very busy, yet when I did have time to write I had writers block. Thank you everyone who left me a review for the last chapter. I love them all. Now as for the next update, its possibly going to be a couple of weeks before its up again. This week I'm working on my final exam which I have a week to complete, starting today. I want to do well so I can become a Therapist :) Wish me luck. That's all for now and Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 36<p>

Ukitake was walking slowly and cautiously down a corridor that led in the general direction of the Head-Captains office. He felt very apprehensive about being here. He would have been perfectly happy to leave off going to the First for a bit longer. There were still so many other avenues of enquiry they could have made without having to go directly to the Head-Captain. Yet Toushiro had been insistent, and so had Unohana.

They both seemed to be under the impression that he'd been avoiding having to go to the First. That wasn't necessarily true, he was just as eager as them to find out Shunsui's whereabouts and to see that no harm had befallen him. The problem was, he just didn't know if the Head-Captain would actually tell him anything. In the Head-Captains eyes, he was after all a complete failure.

Unohana had tried to tell him differently, but he wasn't convinced. The reason being, was because of the last thing the Head-Captain had said to him. Those words had cut into him deeply. Yes Shunsui was his best friend, and like a brother to him. But had he really failed him? Yes things had been a little awkward between them at one point, but things were okay again. Yet the Head-Captain still deemed it as unforgivable.

The only reason why he was here at the moment, was because he'd finally caved in during a conversation he'd been having with Toushiro literally an hour ago in the Tenths office.

"_All of it?"_

"_Yes, all of it."_

"_Are you sure?"_

"_Positive, their office has been completely cleared of all paperwork," Toushiro rummaged inside his pocket and pulled out the notification he'd found in the Eighths office, "Here, see what you make of that."_

"_The Head-Captain issued this order personally," Ukitake exclaimed a few minutes later, "That makes no sense."_

"_I thought it was rather odd too," Toushiro turned back to face Ukitake and folded his arms into his sleeves, "Do you have any theories?"_

"_Hmm," Ukitake pulled his gaze away from the note, "Why would he have it all redirected to the First? Its not like he would ask his own men to work on another Divisions back log of paperwork. Interesting."_

"_Do you think Shunsui could actually be locked away in a cell at the First, with the Eighths paperwork to keep him company?" Toushiro asked as he folded his arms into his sleeves._

"_I suppose its reasonable to assume that," Ukitake pulled his eyes away from the notification._

"_Ukitake there's one more thing," Toushiro said as he stepped back over to the older Captain who was sporting grey hair today._

_Ukitake focused on him fully, "What is it?"_

"_More like a suggestion," Toushiro began, "From Rangiku actually. She reckons we're going about this all wrong. I don't think she's too keen on the idea of us sneaking around the Maggots Nest. She thinks the best approach is to just be direct. I think I'll have to agree with her too. Why don't we just go straight to the First, and ask the Head-Captain directly."_

"_Retsu seems to think the same thing too," Ukitake sighed sounding defeated, "I just don't think its a good idea."_

"_So what do you want to do then?" Toushiro sat back down in his chair and pulled a form towards him. He'd noticed for a few days now that Ukitake seemed rather hesitant about going to the First Division. Which in all honesty, would be the most logical place to gain answers, "Because to be honest, it seems like you've been purposefully avoiding having to go the the First for a few days now," he pointed out. _

"_I've been doing no such thing!" Ukitake replied with indignation._

"_Really?" Toushiro decided to finally call Ukitake out on his current behaviour, "Then why do you still insist that going to the First is a bad idea, despite everyone else thinking its the right way to go about things?"_

"_I don't think its a bad idea at all," Ukitake protested._

_Toushiro frowned, "Then what's the problem? Why are you so reluctant to go there?"_

"_I'm not reluctant to go anywhere Toushiro," Ukitake averted his gaze from Toushiro and returned to looking at the notification in his hand._

"_Well if that's the case then," Toushiro rose to his feet and stepped away from his desk, "Lets head over there now."_

"_Now?" Ukitake exclaimed._

"_No time like the present. Shunsui's been missing for over a week now. In all honesty, I reckon the Head-Captain will at least be expecting you," Toushiro glanced at Ukitake and noticed his sudden hesitation, "What's wrong?"_

"_Nothing," Ukitake folded the notification and handed it back to Toushiro._

_Toushiro took it and placed it into a drawer inside his desk, when he glanced back at Ukitake he caught the uneasy look on his face, "Are you feeling apprehensive about having to face the Head-Captain again?"_

"_Of course not," Ukitake answered a little too quickly._

"_Its understandable if you are," Toushiro kept his face neutral._

"_Its not like that Toushiro," Ukitake snapped back._

"_Then what is it?"_

_Ukitake remained stubbornly quiet._

_Noticing this Toushiro decided to press his point further, feeling pretty sure that he was getting to the bottom of Ukitake's reluctance, "The Head-Captain was livid," Toushiro pointed out, "Its only natural if you feel sca-"_

_"Your best friend and brother needed you, but you've failed him. In my eyes that is unforgivable," Ukitake suddenly spat out. Seeing Toushiro's look of confusion he quickly added, "Thats the last thing the Head-Captain said to me before kicking me out of the office. It was also the last time I saw Shunsui."_

_An awkward silence descended between them and Toushiro finally understood why Ukitake was feeling so apprehensive about having to face the Head-Captain. He'd really taken the Head-Captains words to heart. He probably also felt guilty at having to leave Shunsui to face Yamamoto alone, and even more so since Shunsui's disappearance. _

_After a few agonisingly long minutes of silence, Toushiro decided it was safe to speak up, "Ukitake-"_

"_I am not scared to face the Head-Captain, Toushiro," Ukitake interrupted, "I want to find out what's happened to Shunsui," Ukitake pinched the bridge of his nose, "But at the same time I'm just worried about what I'll find out."_

_Toushiro surveyed Ukitake for a few seconds before sighing, "Look. We both know the only person who can get the Head-Captain to tell us anything, is you. The only way we're going to find anything out at this point is if you ask him directly. I'll come along with you to the First, but we both know that will be pointless. He will only speak to you, if you go alone. We need answers Ukitake. Answers that only you can get at this point."_

"_Yes but the question is Toushiro," Ukitake cleared his throat, "Will he actually listen to me? You thought he was angry when you saw him, well that was nothing compared to how angry he was with me and Retsu. As for Shunsui, well it doesn't bare thinking about."_

"_The only way you'll know, or, if we're going to find anything out, is by asking him," Toushiro answered coolly, "Yes the Head-Captain was angry, but I bet he'll be much more inclined to talk to you now that he's had a bit of time to cool off."_

"_Fine then!" He replied feeling oddly angry,"I will go to the First." _

It was shortly after then, that he'd set out for the First. As much as he hated to admit it, Toushiro had been right. He was the only person other then Retsu, who could actually approach the Head-Captain and find out what they needed to know. Just as Toushiro had said, its highly likely that the Head-Captain would be expecting him too.

Ukitake paused in his walking when he realised he'd reached the last turn off. Here was where he carried straight on if he wanted the Head-Captains office. However, the reason why he stopped was because this last turn off actually led away to where the Firsts holding cells were situated.

Glancing down that corridor at the end he noticed the absence of any guards. He was pretty sure if someone was being held there, then there would be guards posted outside. It was obvious now that Shunsui couldn't be in there. Yet Ukitake had a nagging feeling to go and look anyway.

His feet began moving of their own accord and started carrying down that corridor. In no time he was hovering outside the door that let down to the cells. After a quick glance over his shoulder, he opened the door, stepped inside and started descending the stairs.

Once he'd reached the level where the cells were, he slowed to a stop and took a few moments to listen. He couldn't hear anything or feel anyone's energy, so he started walking down the wide passage that had cells lining each side.

He took the time to glance in each cell as he passed. He could tell from the feel of some of them, that they hadn't held anyone for decades. He was about to glance in the next cell when he felt a lingering trace of Shunsui's energy. It felt as though it came from the last cell on the right. He hurried over to it and peered inside.

His heart dropped slightly when he realised this cell, like the others before it, was empty too.

Yet Shunsui had definitely been here at some point.

Ukitake stepped inside the cell and closed his eyes as he concentrated on the lingering trace of Shunsui's energy. It'd grown quite faint, so Ukitake estimated that the cell had been empty for about a week. Yet amongst the faint trace of energy Ukitake felt a small and strong concentration of Shunsui's energy. It almost felt like a splinter in his finger. It was coming from the simple bed that'd been attached to the opposite wall.

Ukitake stepped over to the bed and ran his eyes over it. Everything appeared to be in place. So he began stripping the bed, pulling off the thin sheets and the pillows. He wasn't entirely sure what he was looking for, but he knew Shunsui had left something behind to be found.

As he lifted the old, lumpy futon up and tossed it to one side his eyes landed on a carefully concealed scrap of paper that Shunsui had folded and tucked between the bed and the wall of the cell. Ukitake reached for it and tugged it out of its hiding place.

A quick glance showed him that it was in fact, an envelope that'd been addressed to him. It was Shunsui's handwriting for sure. He was about to open it when he heard movement from behind him and instead, he quickly stashed the envelope inside his haori. If Shunsui felt the need to hide it in the first place, then he wasn't going to flash it around in plain sight.

He'd literally just hidden the envelope when he felt a heavy hand land on his shoulder, "Are you quite done snooping around down here?"

Ukitake whipped around, "Sensei!"

"You wont find him down here," Yamamoto stated before turning on his heel and walking away, "Now come with me," he ordered.

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><p>Up in the Head-Captains office Ukitake hovered awkwardly near the door as the Head-Captain stepped over to his desk and sat down. Once Yamamoto settled down he then levelled his heavy gaze on Ukitake, "I know why you're here Juushiro, you're trying to find out what has become of Shunsui," Yamamoto stated in his gravelly voice, "Correct?"<p>

Ukitake gave a curt nod but remained quiet.

The Head-Captain harrumphed, "Its been well over a week, why has it taken you this long to actually come to me? Usually you'd have banged my door down and demanded answers by now."

For once Ukitake felt at a bit of a loss on what to say in this situation. It was true. Back in their academy days if Shunsui had gotten into a spot of bother and he hadn't heard anything from him after the Head-Captain had punished him, he would always without fail approach the Head-Captain to find out what had happened to him. Most of the time Yamamoto had let him off with a light telling off, and usually Shunsui would then be found passed out drunk somewhere. However this time was different. A lot different.

He'd been torn between wanting to help Shunsui and not wanting to irritate the Head-Captain any further. It hadn't just been Shunsui in the line of fire this time. They all had.

"Well?" The Head-Captain suddenly boomed, "Are you going to say something or just stand there?"

Ukitake snapped his head up and met the Head-Captains gaze.

Yamamoto then kicked a stool out from under his desk, "Have a seat."

Ukitake stepped over towards the desk and after a quick glance at the stool, he sat himself down on it.

"I know what's wrong with you Juushiro, and why you've been avoiding me," Yamamoto stated bluntly, "I can read both you and Shunsui like a book. My words from that night have cut into you deeply," the Head-Captain paused and glanced out over the Seireitei, "Emotions were running high that night, there was much stress and anger on both sides. Everyone at some point says something out of anger that they don't necessarily mean. Myself included. Incidentally, I don't see you as a complete failure, so stop seeing yourself as such."

Ukitake quirked an eyebrow, "Is that your way of apologising?" He asked warily.

"Its as good as you're going to get," Yamamoto grumbled, "Take it or leave it."

Ukitake suppressed a grin. Shunsui was right about the Head-Captain, he really did suck at apologising. No wonder he rarely apologised about anything. Maybe that's why he was so bad at it, because he hadn't had much practise.

"Wipe that grin off your face!" Yamamoto's voice suddenly boomed, "I thought you came here because you wanted answers."

"Yes Sensei," Ukitake immediately straightened his face, and in a much more serious tone he asked, "So what's the situation with Shunsui? Why has nobody seen or heard from him for over a week?"

Yamamoto was quiet for a few moments before answering, "The reason why nobody has seen Shunsui for awhile, is because he isn't here in the Soul Society. As for nobody hearing from him, that's untrue. He's been reporting into me daily as ordered. As a matter of fact, he should be reporting in any time soon."

"Not in the Soul Society!" Ukitake exclaimed loudly, "Then where is he?"

"I sent him away on a special mission," Yamamoto stated unconcerned, "I was hoping the time away would do him some good and give him some time to decide what is important to him."

"I see and where did you send him?" Ukitake asked.

The Head-Captain ignored him and continued on, "I'm not happy with him Juushiro, I'm not happy one bit. He's been away for a week and I just cant seem to get the damn message into that thick skull of his."

"What message?" Ukitake asked curiously.

The Head-Captain rose from his seat and marched across the room to the opposite wall, where a concealed closet opened. The Head-Captain pulled a white haori out of it and came back over to his desk. He then tossed the Captains haori onto his desk for Ukitake to see. The kanji on the back was in plain sight, "That's Shunsui's haori."

"Yes it is!" The Head-Captain barked slightly irritated.

"Did you strip him of his rank and confiscate it?" Ukitake glanced at Yamamoto as he asked this, and saw the tick in his eyebrow, "Or did Shunsui..?"

"Did you know that he offered to resign from his post as Captain of the Eighth?" Yamamoto barked again, "That he was willing to throw everything away, his entire Shinigami career. That he was willing to walk away from everything, all for the sake of Miss Ise and the unborn child."

"Shunsui has always cared deeply for Nanao," Ukitake defended, "He genuinely loves her. Sensei its not just a fling this time around. Of course he would throw everything away to be with her. He loves her."

Yamamoto slammed his fist down on his desk, "Well I wont let him throw everything away. To be frank his decision was rash and idiotic. Clearly he wasn't thinking straight at the time. Its just as well that I've sent him away for a bit. That boy needs to get his damn head straightened out. You cant just walk away from the Gotei 13, especially not as a Captain. You cant just waltz off with your Lieutenant as you see fit either. Think of the mess it would leave behind. Does he really think for a minute that I'd let either of my boys go as easily as that!"

Ukitake thought it was for the best to stay quiet for a bit. Yamamoto paced around for a bit before returning to his seat. When the silence grew unbearable Ukitake broke it by asking, "This mission that you've sent him on, what's the nature of it and how long will he be away for?"

"The mission is to protect an area from Hollow invasion. As for how long he'll be away. Well that will depend on how long it takes for him to figure things out," Yamamoto replied off handedly, "Once I'm satisfied that he's making the right decisions regarding his future, I'll allow him to return."

"And what do you consider the right decisions to be Sensei?"

"I think Captain Hitsugaya is a prime example of what I deem to be the right decision," Yamamoto opened his eyes slightly, "Despite the fact that he married his Lieutenant and had a child too. He's still able to run his Division as effectively as ever."

Ukitake smiled fondly at the mention of Toushiro, Rangiku and Kotaro.

"We both know who really runs the Eighth Division Juushiro. Miss Ise's done a wonderful job of keeping things running over the years. What I need Shunsui to understand is that, he cant keep carrying on and expecting her to run things for him. I understand she's been ill the last few weeks, and we've both seen the mess the office has fallen into. He couldn't even cope with that paperwork. How the hell does he expect to cope once Miss Ise becomes the Mother to his child? Have they even discussed that between them?"

"To be fair Head-Captain," Ukitake cleared his throat, "Shunsui had only found out that Nanao was pregnant, literally half an hour before he came to see you that night. I think its safe to say that he and Nanao haven't been able to discuss the matter. So how can you expect either of them to know how its going to work out between running the Division and raising a child? I can see why you've decided to ship Shunsui off to think things over, but this thing is a joint decision between Shunsui and Nanao. Its only those two who will know and can decide what's best for them."

"Exactly, which is why I've separated the two of them for now. So they can both take the time needed to think things over individually. Then when I feel the time is right to allow Shunsui to return, hopefully they can talk things through and know exactly how things are going to work."

Ukitake sighed and looked away from Yamamoto, his gaze was riveted to the view of the Seireitei instead, "So where exactly have you sent Shunsui then?"

"I'll let him tell you that himself," Yamamoto replied.

Ukitake returned his attention to the Head-Captain and saw him rooting around in a drawer. The next thing he knew, Yamamoto had placed something on his desk and had pushed it over to him. The small device slid across the desk and came to a stop in front of him. Ukitake picked it up and recognized it as one of Kurotsuchi's ear pieces that Toushiro and Rangiku had tested out whilst away on their mission.

"Like I said Juushiro," Yamamoto began, "He should be reporting in any time soon."

The device in Ukitake's hand began beeping, he glanced at the Head-Captain who gave him a little nod. Ukitake fitted the device to his ear and pressed the button to receive the call, "Hello?"

There was a long pause on the other end until, "JUU!" Shunsui's voice sounded throughout the office, apparently the device seemed to be on loudspeaker.

Ukitake winced and pulled the device away from his ear, "Yes Shunsui, its me."

"What are you... Are you in the Head-Captains office?" Shunsui asked cautiously.

"Yes I am," Ukitake felt a small smile creep onto his face.

"Is the Head-Captain there?" He asked warily.

Ukitake glanced at the Head-Captain, who then shook his head from side to side, "Err not at the moment Shunsui."

"Are you sneaking around again Juushiro?" Although Shunsui wasn't joking, Ukitake thought he detected a hint of amusement in his friends voice.

"Maybe a little," Ukitake admitted.

"Did you find-"

"Yes," Ukitake cut him off aware that the Head-Captain was listening in, his tone may have come across as a bit snappy.

Shunsui was quiet for a little while, Ukitake prayed that his friend picked up the subtle hint that he needed to watch what he was saying, "Oh that's good. I'm rather attached to that hat and haori you know."

"I'm aware," Ukitake breathed a sigh of relief, glad that Shunsui had taken the hint, "You really ought to be careful where you leave your things lying around. Anyone could have found them."

"I'll take that into consideration next time," Shunsui replied lazily.

"Shunsui," Ukitake suddenly became very serious, "Where are you? Are you okay?"

"That old fart," Shunsui sighed, "He sent me away on a mission Juu. I'm to protect this island from any invading Hollows."

"Well that doesn't sound so bad, considering what other punishments he could have chosen for you."

"Juu! Its worst then that!" Shunsui whined childishly, "What the old git didn't tell me, is that its a remote island in the World of the Living! Its so remote that it has no inhabitants at all. No people, equals no Hollows. I'm so bored Juu! I'm going out of my mind!"

"Well, maybe he just wants you to have some space to think things over, and to relax a bit?"

"How can I relax here? I should be there with Nanao-chan!" Shunsui growled slightly under his breath, "She needs me. We have so much we need to discuss. I miss her Juu. I just hope she's doing okay. This place is so damn lonely."

"Well have you tried to leave at all?" Ukitake asked, "I assume you have your Zanpakuto with you?"

"I cant leave Juu," Shunsui replied sounding exasperated, "Believe me I've tried, several times in fact. That old god damn git has made sure of that. I cant open up a senkaimon from this side, its been disabled. This island is in the middle of nowhere, it has sea surrounding it on all sides. But that's not the issue here. There's a freaking isolation barrier surrounding the whole island. There's just no way I can get off this god damn lonely rock. I've tried all the ways I could think off to smash through the barrier, but its unbreakable."

"Wow that's an unusual punishment, I thought for sure that you'd been tossed in a prison cell somewhere."

"This IS a prison Juu. A very scenic prison mind you, but its still a prison all the same," Shunsui growled and Ukitake could have sworn he heard a tree or something snap in two, "I just want to be with Nanao-chan, I need to be with her so bad. I need to see with my own eyes that she's okay."

"Shunsui."

"Yes?"

"Nanao is okay," Ukitake answered honestly, "She misses you a lot. That much is obvious. But she is doing okay. Retsu discharged her from the Fourth today. We didn't want to send her home to be alone, so we've arranged it so she's staying with Toushiro and Rangiku at the Tenth. She's in good hands."

The line started to crackle with static and Ukitake failed to hear what Shunsui said in reply. Next the line had been completely cut off. He tapped the earpiece a few times to no avail, "Shunsui can you hear me?"

"Times up I'm afraid," the Head-Captain spoke up again, "Those earpieces tend to cut out after awhile."

Ukitake pulled the earpiece out of his ear and placed it on the edge of Yamamoto's desk, "I just wish I could've had a few minutes longer."

"Be grateful that I actually allowed you to speak with him," Yamamoto grumbled as he picked up his writing brush and began working on a form, "Being in isolation generally means you don't get the luxury of communicating with friends. Now be gone from here Juushiro. I have work to do."

Ukitake's eyebrows rose at the sudden dismissal, "Yes Sensei," he rose to his feet and walked over to the door. He paused and glanced back at the Head-Captain who was busy writing away and paying him no attention. Ukitake just sighed and slipped out the door.

Once outside in the fresh air, Ukitake took a moment to close his eyes and take in a deep lungful of air. To say he'd been dreading coming here, it'd actually not been as bad as he'd originally expected. He felt something rustle inside his haori and he remembered the envelope that Shunsui had addressed to him.

He pulled it out and opened the envelope. It was a bit awkward to pull the contents out because it seemed as though the envelope contained another envelope as well as a note.

The note was short and straight to the point – _Juu, I need you to give this to Nanao-chan._

The second envelope was addressed to Nanao. It felt quite thick, and at the bottom Ukitake could feel something small and hard. He pocketed the envelope and started to walk.

Where he was off to first, he wasn't quite sure. He just felt that right now, he needed to walk to clear his head somewhat.


	37. Chapter 37

Hello, not much to say here just a quick thank you to everyone who read and reviewed the last chapter. I'm running a bit late this morning.

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 37<p>

"_Kotaro, will you hurry up and get out of the bathroom!" _

Toushiro's voice floated through the layers of Nanao's sleepy mind.

"_Two more minutes Daddy!"_

"_You said that ten minutes ago, now hurry up!"_

"_I'll only be five more minutes!"_

"_Just come and tell me when you've finished okay," Toushiro replied crossly._

Nanao sighed sleepily and rolled over onto her side, cocooning herself further into the bedsheets. She drifted into a deeper sleep. When she started to wake again sometime later, she could hear Kotaro's childish giggles as he bounded around the house, so full of life and energy.

"_Kotaro Hitsugaya, freeze!" _

Nanao heard Rangiku call sternly.

"_What is it Mummy?"_

"_What have I told you about using so much toilet paper? You've blocked the toilet up again!"_

"_I'm sorry Mummy.." _

Nanao thought Kotaro sounded so sweet and apologetic.

"_Never mind that," Rangiku sighed, "Did you tell your Father that the bathroom was free?"_

"_Err," Kotaro replied sheepishly, "I forgot Mummy."_

"_Kotaro!" Rangiku exclaimed, "He's already running late as it is."_

Once again Nanao drifted back into a deep sleep.

The next time Nanao's eyes fluttered open, she wasn't feeling as tired and as sleepy as before. She actually felt reasonably well rested and as though she was ready to face the day. She let out a soft yawn and stretched her arms out above her head. Laying on her back, she noticed how much quieter everything seemed now. Had Captain Hitsugaya gone into the office and taken Kotaro with him?

As she was pondering this, her stomach started to make a churning noise. Nanao knew she wasn't feeling hungry just yet, in fact she was feeling a little uncomfortable around her middle. Nanao caught a whiff of food cooking and she felt her stomach flip and roll.

She tossed the bed covers to one side and shot out of bed, heading for the bathroom.

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><p>Toushiro was in the shower going about his usual morning routine when he heard the bathroom door burst open. This wasn't a cause for much concern to him as he was used to being interrupted for various reasons by either Rangiku or Kotaro. It'd become an unwritten rule in the Hitsugaya household that the bathroom door always stayed unlocked. Unless of course you were Kotaro who enjoyed doing things properly like a 'big boy' or Rangiku who insisted on having long uninterrupted soaks in the bath.<p>

He sighed deeply, maybe it was time that he broke his own rule. Nobody else seemed to be paying it much attention.

Toushiro finished massaging the shampoo into his hair and briefly wondered who was invading the bathroom this time. He knew it couldn't be Kotaro, his son had already been locked in here for thirty minutes this morning, surely he shouldn't need to come in again. He also knew that it only took Kotaro two minutes to blitz his teeth and splash some water on his face. Why he'd taken thirty minutes this morning, Toushiro just didn't want to know. But judging by the smell when he'd first stepped in the bathroom, it really wasn't that much of a mystery.

It had to be Rangiku, he mused. Although saying that she'd normally announce her presense and try to sneak a cheeky peek.

He ducked his head back under the shower head to rinse off his hair, then promptly pulled it away again. Over the noise of running water, he could have sworn he heard someone... No, couldn't have. All was quiet.

A few seconds later however, he definitely heard the sound of someone throwing up. He lifted a hand to turn the shower off, then reached outside the shower cubicle for his towel. He wiped the water out of his eyes and slung the towel around his hips. He then glanced around the bathroom and saw Nanao kneeling in front of the toilet looking very pale.

"Err are you okay?" He asked awkwardly.

Nanao jumped slightly on hearing his voice and whipped her head in his direction. Realising that he'd emerged from the shower and was only wearing a towel, she turned crimson and quickly averted her gaze, "Captain Hitsugaya, I'm so sorry for interrupting."

Toushiro waved the apology away, "Its okay, no need to apologise.

"I didn't realise you were in here," Nanao replied clearly mortified.

"Really its okay, I'm use to it with Rangiku and Kotaro," Toushiro adjusted his towel and made sure it was a bit more secure, "So err, I take it that you have morning sickness right?"

Nanao nodded, "Yes."

Toushiro grimaced, "I remember when Rangiku was the same, she used to drink a lot of peppermint tea. Apparently it helps to settle the stomach."

"I think Captain Unohana mentioned something about that before she discharged me," Nanao croaked.

"I'll give you some privacy now," Toushiro stepped over to the bathroom door, before he pulled it shut behind he added, "I'll let Rangiku know that you're awake."

As Toushiro strolled down the hallway heading for his bedroom, Kotaro came bombing out of his bedroom heading for the kitchen. Toushiro crouched down and whipped him off the floor and tossed him over his shoulder, "Come here little man."

Kotaro squealed "Daddy caught me!"

"Where's the fire?" Toushiro smirked as he tickled Kotaro's ribs, Kotaro wiggled and squirmed in his arms.

"Mummy's making breakfast and its nearly ready," Kotaro informed between giggles and squeals.

"Kotaro will you set the table for me please?" Rangiku asked as she emerged from the room Nanao was staying in. Toushiro lowered Kotaro to the floor and within seconds he'd dashed off towards the kitchen. "Toshi have you seen Nanao anywhere?" Rangiku asked, obviously feeling a little worried that Nanao wasn't in her room.

"Yes, she's in the bathroom," Toushiro replied and stepped around Rangiku to get to their bedroom.

"The bathroom," Rangiku repeated, knowing that she'd just seen Toushiro emerge from there, "But weren't you just in there taking a shower?"

"Yes I was," he called back over his shoulder as he pushed the bedroom door open.

Rangiku just shrugged and let the matter drop, "Nanao can I come in?" She asked as she tapped lightly on the bathroom door.

In the bedroom Toushiro quickly got dressed and donned his Captains haori. Nanao had been staying with them for a few days now. Toushiro thought at first that it may have taken some time adjusting to having another person living in their home. Yet he needn't have worried. Nanao was the sort of person who generally kept herself to herself, and half of the time she was in her room resting. When they gathered together for their meals Nanao was usually pretty quiet. It was actually quite nice having another sensible person in the house, it helped to balance out the exuberant energy that Rangiku and Kotaro dished out on a regular basis.

"Daddy!" Kotaro called and knocked loudly on the bedroom door, "Are you still in there?"

"Yes Kotaro," Toushiro replied as he styled his hair in the usual way, the door swung open with a bang, "What have I told you about slamming doors Kotaro?"

"Sorry is was an accident," Kotaro padded over to Toushiro and clambered onto the bed.

"What's up anyway?" Toushiro went back to shaping and spiking his hair.

"Breakfast is ready, we're waiting for you."

"Well I'm done now," Toushiro got to his feet and ushered Kotaro out of the bedroom, "Come on lets eat, I'm starving."

* * *

><p>In the kitchen, the Hitsugaya's and Nanao were all sat around the table. Toushiro was currently tucking into a plate of eggs, bacon, tomatoes and beans, while fending off Kotaro. Who was trying to sneak a bit of his bacon off the plate, despite being busy scoffing down his own chocolate cereal that was shaped like little footballs.<p>

Rangiku was going to make herself an omelette and was planning on having some fruit afterwards, but first she just needed to sort out Nanao. Who unfortunately seemed to have lost her appetite during her bout of morning sickness.

"Nanao you need to eat something," Rangiku tapped her finger against her chin, "How about an omelette or something, maybe some porridge?"

Nanao seemed to pale at the idea, which Rangiku noticed.

"Okay how about something plain and non milky," Rangiku seemed deep in thought until her eyes lit up, "A bowl of plain rice?"

"Rangiku, maybe you could do something for Nanao that will help settle her stomach first," Toushiro spoke up after swallowing his mouthful of food, "Didn't you used to survive on plain toast in your first few months of pregnancy?"

Kotaro who'd been watching his Mum and Dad talk, took advantage of Toushiro's distraction and reached out to pluck the last bit of bacon off of Toushiro's plate...

"Owwww!" He squealed loudly when Toushiro's fork came down and clipped him across his knuckles, "Daddy that hurt!"

"Then stop trying to steal my food," Toushiro grouched and promptly stabbed his fork in the bacon and shoved it in his mouth before Kotaro could try and steal it again.

"Sweetie what have I told you about doing that?" Rangiku admonished, "If you wanted some bacon, then you should have told me when I first asked you."

"But it looks so nice."

"Tough, you have your cereal," Rangiku pointed out, "Now eat it."

Kotaro went back to eating his cereal, sulking.

"Would you like to try some toast Nanao, then if you can keep it down maybe try some rice afterwards?"

"Sure okay," Nanao replied and picked up her cup to sip at her tea.

Kotaro tugged on the end of Nanao's sleeve, "Auntie Nan-nan, are you going to have butter on it?"

Nanao glanced at the butter and felt her stomach squirm. She took a deep breath and shoved the feeling aside, "Maybe that's not a good idea Kota-kun."

"What about jam, or peanut butter?" Kotaro's eyes suddenly lit up, "Oh I know how about chocolate spread?"

Out the corner of his eye Toushiro saw Nanao take a deep breath and swallow, "That's enough food suggestions from you little man, now eat the rest of your breakfast."

"But-" Kotaro went to protest.

"In silence," Toushiro cut him off. Kotaro pouted and returned to munching on his cereal.

Rangiku handed Nanao a couple slices of plain toast then went about boiling some rice. Once the rice was slowly cooking, she started to make herself an omelette.

A few minutes later Rangiku returned to the table with her breakfast and noticed with a small smile that Nanao was already starting on her second slice of toast. Unohana had told her several times that she needed to ensure that Nanao was eating sufficiently.

It didn't take long for Rangiku to polish off her omelette and she was soon back on her feet and ladling spoonfuls of rice into a bowl. She stepped back over to the table and placed the bowl down in front of Nanao, "Let me know if you want anything to go with it okay," she then stepped around the table and picked up Kotaro's empty bowl and Toushiro's plate which had been cleared. She dumped them in the sink then poured out a beaker of juice for Kotaro.

Toushiro got to his feet and stepped over to the sink to help Rangiku wash and dry the breakfast pots. It was their usual routine in the mornings.

Nanao pulled the bowl of rice closer to her and began to slowly work her way through it. After a few mouthfuls she soon realised she could probably stomach some sauce with it, "Rangiku."

"What is it Nanao?" Rangiku spun gracefully on her heel to face Nanao, feeling pleased to see her eating some rice, "Would you like some sauce with it?"

"Yes please," Nanao rested her hand over her stomach, "I think I'll be okay now."

"Great," Rangiku replied in her usual bubbly manner and started routing through cupboards, "We have soy sauce, hot sauce, tomato sauce," Rangiku poked her head out of the cupboard and peered at Nanao. It seemed that neither of them sounded appealing to her so Rangiku buried her head back in the cupboard, "There's also barbecue sauce, apple sauce, mint sauce..." The list went on and on.

"Daddy," Kotaro whispered to Toushiro, "Why does Mummy have so many sauces in the cupboard?"

"She likes to experiment sometimes," Toushiro whispered back with a grimace as he recalled some of her 'earlier' experiments. Buying that recipe book had been a god send in the end, "Think yourself lucky that she knows how to cook now."

After Rangiku had finished calling out all the sauces she had to hand, she glanced at Nanao again, "Do any of them call out to you?"

"I'm sorry," Nanao frowned, "Its strange feeling like I really need sauce but not knowing what type."

Rangiku's face lit up and she beamed at Nanao, "I do believe you're starting to show signs of having cravings!"

Toushiro placed down the Seireitei Communication magazine he was reading and groaned, "Don't remind me about food cravings. Rangiku drove me mad sending me out at all hours of the night for things like ice-cream and goodness knows what else."

"OH!" Kotaro suddenly spoke up making them all jump. He then jumped down off his seat and went padding over to another cupboard. He opened it and began digging around inside.

Toushiro glanced at Rangiku and quirked an eyebrow, Rangiku returned his gaze with a shrug, "Err little man what are you doing?"

"Its in here somewhere," his voice sounded muffled.

"What's in there sweetie?"

"Grandad gave it to me," was Kotaro's reply.

"Gave what to you?" Toushiro asked wearily.

"This!" Kotaro said triumphantly as he brandished a small squeezy bottle. He then padded back over to the table and placed it down.

Toushiro made a grab for it and recognized it as the bottle of ice-cream syrup that both he and Rangiku had decided to confiscate from Kotaro, "Not this again."

"Oh god, is it that stuff Captain Ukitake gave him to put on ice-cream?" Rangiku stepped over to the table and picked the bottle up.

"Yes it is," Toushiro replied, scowling as he recalled that unfortunate incident where Kotaro had only tried the smallest amount and then had been running around in circles for several hours afterwards. The whole Incident had made hyperactivity seem rather tame in comparison. Rangiku had fortunately been away at a SWA meeting at the time. Toushiro unfortunately had been the one who needed to deal with it.

"Its chocolate and strawberry flavour," Kotaro grinned.

Rangiku opened the lid and sniffed at it, "Eww it smells disgusting."

"It tastes nice!" Kotaro protested.

"Yeah and it'll rot your teeth too," Toushiro pointed out eyeing the bottle wearily.

Rangiku grabbed a bowl and turned the bottle upside down and squeezed. The syrup was so thick and gooey it seemed to take forever to travel from the bottle to the bowl, "Looks disgusting too," she scrunched up her nose at the gooey brown slop.

Kotaro reached out a finger to dip it in the sauce, but Toushiro grabbed his hand and pulled him away, "I don't think so, not after what happened last time," Toushiro got a whiff of the sickly sweet syrup and could of sworn his teeth were going to melt of their own accord.

"I'll get rid of it before it makes Nanao sick again," Rangiku picked up the bowl but before she could take it away, Nanao had stopped her with a hand on her arm.

"Actually Rangiku," Nanao glanced at the sauce and Rangiku saw a look of longing in her eyes, "It smells wonderful."

"You cant be serious Nanao?" Rangiku asked in disbelief.

Nanao extended a finger and dipped it in the sauce, then brought it up to her lips and popped her finger in her mouth. She took a few moments to savour the flavour and a satisfied looked blossomed on her face, "Mmm that's hit the spot."

"Erm are you sure?" Toushiro asked looking revolted.

Rangiku handed the bowl to Nanao who took it and promptly poured it over her rice. She had a few mouthfuls and smiled happily, "Hmm perfect."

"Well I suppose she is eating something," Rangiku replied unsure, "It cant be healthy though."

"See!" Kotaro perked up happily, "I told you it was nice Auntie Nan-nan."

Nanao nodded in agreement and carried on with eating her rice.

Toushiro rose to his feet, "I need to get to the office, I'll see you all later," he headed for the front door feeling more then a little grossed out.

* * *

><p>It was one of those rare days in October where the sun was shining and despite a slight chill to the wind, it was quite a nice day.<p>

For the last hour Rangiku had been outside in the garden teaching Kotaro the basics of Shunpo. Kotaro was a smart kid and usually grasped new concepts really quickly. Like the sword kata's Toushiro had been teaching him. He'd also been a fast learner when Rangiku had been teaching him some basic hand to hand combat and self defence techniques. Shunpo however, was proving problematic.

They'd been at it for an hour and just like last week, and the week before that, and the week before that, they'd made zero progress. Rangiku had tried to simplify it as much as possible, but Kotaro just wasn't getting it.

"Mummy can I go and play now?" Kotaro whined having grown bored and frustrated.

Rangiku glanced over to Nanao who was sitting on a bench, well wrapped up from the chilly wind, "Of course you can sweetie," she too was feeling frustrated at the lack of progress, "I want to talk with Nanao and see how she's doing anyway."

Kotaro nodded and zoomed off deep into the garden, chasing after the football Toushiro had given to him.

Rangiku watched him go then went to join Nanao over on the bench. She sat down with a sigh and snaked her arm around Nanao's waist and rested her head against Nanao's shoulder, "I'm a bad teacher."

"On the contrary Rangiku," Nanao replied in a soft tired voice, "I thought you did an excellent job of explaining the basics."

"I know!" Rangiku exclaimed loudly, "I just don't understand why he isn't getting it as easily as the other stuff we've been teaching him."

"He will," Nanao assured, "Maybe he just needs to work at it a bit more then other stuff. Kido came so naturally to me," a breeze kicked up and Nanao pulled her dressing gown tighter around her shoulders, "Yet I seemed to struggle with sword training. It took a bit of extra work but I can manage sufficiently now."

"I suppose it helps when you have private one on one lessons with a Gotei 13 Captain who happens to be quite skilled with a sword," Rangiku nudged Nanao with her elbow and winked playfully.

"There's that too."

"Speaking of Shunsui," Rangiku paused to check Nanao's reaction, "How are you holding up?"

Another gust of wind kicked up that sent Nanao's teeth chattering, "Oh, well you know..."

"Come on," Rangiku got to her feet and pulled Nanao up with her, "Lets go for a walk around the garden."

They'd been walking in silence for five minutes, Rangiku suspected Nanao was having trouble voicing how she truly felt. But she knew the best approach was to allow Nanao time to mull things over. She would share how she felt when she was ready.

"Rangiku," Nanao spoke up a few minutes later.

"What is it?" Rangiku smiled warmly.

"Is it me, or is it starting to feel really cold now?" Nanao asked through chattering teeth.

"Oh," Rangiku grinned, "Its not you hun, this part of the garden is always cold. Even in Summer." Seeing Nanao's expression she quickly added, "You'll see soon enough, just don't tell anyone okay. Toushiro would kill me."

They carried on walking a bit further until they reached a high hedge that was impossible to see over. Rangiku took the path to the right and led Nanao around a corner. Once they'd cleared the edge Rangiku stood to one side so Nanao could see.

"Wow," Nanao was completely stunned.

"Its beautiful right?" Rangiku asked with a small smile.

Nanao nodded and stepped toward the nearest ice sculpture. There were hundreds of them in this section of the garden, ranging from very small ones perched on rocks and stones, medium ones sitting on pedestals of ice and a handful of large ones that dominated the rest. She ran her fingers over a medium sized, life like butterfly. She almost expected it to take flight and flutter away.

"I knew Captain Hitsugaya had submitted a few pictures of ice sculptures to the Seireitei Communication," Nanao glanced around in wide eyed wonder and started to walk slowly towards a large dragon that she assumed to be Hyourimaru, "But I had no idea he'd done so many."

"Its like a hobby to him, its his way of relaxing and unwinding," Rangiku commented as she admired a collection of small ants and ladybirds that were sat on various sizes of ice rocks and stones, "This is totally Toshi's part of the garden," she heard Nanao gasp and turned around to see what she was looking at, "Ahh, that one," she wandered over to where Nanao was standing in awe of a life size version of a cherry blossom tree. Each ice flower, leaf and branch sparkled in the sunlight. Sitting at the base of the ice tree was an ice version of Rangiku, who was holding a sleeping baby Kotaro. Nanao stumbled over to it in awe and ran her fingers over Rangiku's icy locks, "The detail on this is amazing."

"That's the only ice sculpture he's done with people in it," Rangiku commented with a fond smile, "His subject of interest seems to be nature," Rangiku swept her arm out to indicate all of the other sculptures, "Birds, insects, flowers, animals, the list goes on."

Another gust of wind kicked up and Nanao wrapped her arms tightly around her.

"Come on," Rangiku stepped over to Nanao and wrapped her arm around her shoulders, "I think its time we head back inside and have a cup of tea."

"Sounds good," Nanao agreed gratefully, and allowed Rangiku to lead her back to the house.

"Oh that reminds me," Rangiku suddenly perked up, "I found something in my wardrobe that may interest you Nanao."

"What is it?"

"Just a stack of old baby magazines I picked up from the World of the Living," Rangiku checked Nanao's expression, "You're more then welcome to have a look through them if you want."

"Thank you," Nanao replied in her soft and tired tone. Rangiku suspected she was getting ready for her afternoon nap, "To be honest Rangiku, I've not really thought much about planning for the baby's arrival. Its starting to sink in now, but."

"I understand hun," Rangiku gave her shoulder a supportive squeeze, "Its hard to plan when you don't have your other half around to share it with. I felt the same way when Toushiro was in the Fourth for three months unconscious."

"I just wish we knew where Shunsui is," Nanao shook her head sadly.

"Hey come on," Rangiku pulled Nanao into a hug, "Don't start crying on me now."

"I'm not going to cry."

"Its perfectly natural if you want to though," Rangiku began stroking Nanao's hair, "Its understandable that you miss Shunsui."

"I do miss Shunsui," Nanao admitted, "More then anything."

"He will be back Nanao," Rangiku replied in a soothing tone, "Its Shunsui. He would never leave you behind."

"Mummy where are you!" Kotaro's voice singsonged from a few metres away.

"We're in Daddy's garden Kotaro," Rangiku called back.

A few seconds later Kotaro peeped around the edge of the hedge. Spotting them his eyes sparkled and he started running over to them, "Mummy we have a visitor!" He informed cheerfully clutching a small bag of sweets in his hands.

"Who sweetie?" Rangiku asked although she was fairly certain she knew who it was, judging by the bag of sweets in Kotaro's hand.

"Its Grandad," Kotaro grinned happily, "He's come to visit us and he wants to talk to Auntie Nan-nan too!"

"Okay sweetie, will you run back to him and let him know we'll be there in a few minutes please."

"Okay Mummy," Kotaro dashed away and was gone in seconds.

Rangiku glanced at Nanao and saw the slightly uneasy expression on her face, "Nanao?"

"Do you think Captain Ukitake has found something out about Shunsui?"

Rangiku gave her a tiny nod, "I think that may be a possibility, or he could just be wanting to pay you a visit. Either way, we're not going to find out anything if we stay here now, are we?"

"No you're right," Nanao shivered again and Rangiku bounded forward and began carting Nanao back to the house.


	38. Chapter 38

Good Afternoon everyone, I'm finally ready to post this chapter. I had written a good portion of it last week. However I didn't have the time to finish the rest of it off. I'm finding myself increasingly busy. But fear not I fully plan on getting this story finished. Thank you to everybody who reviewed the last chapter, I'm happy that you enjoyed it. The majority of this chapter features Toushiro and Rangiku ^_^ Please enjoy and happy reading.

* * *

><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 38<p>

A few days had passed by since Ukitake had visited Nanao, and Rangiku was once again worried about her. Rangiku had made herself busy whilst Ukitake had been speaking with Nanao, and had no idea what they'd been discussing. All she knew was that Nanao seemed upset afterwards and had withdrawn into herself again.

For a couple of days, Rangiku had noticed an envelope sitting on the bedside cabinet which had been addressed to Nanao. Rangiku knew Shunsui had sent it, she too recognised his handwriting. However what Rangiku couldn't understand, was why Nanao hadn't bothered to open it yet.

Maybe she was worried about hearing what Shunsui had to say, Rangiku surmised.

Rangiku returned her focus back to tidying Kotaro's room, which closely resembled a bomb sight. She stepped over to the window and opened it, allowing fresh air to flood in. She glanced out over the garden and saw Nanao sitting on a bench with Kotaro perched on her lap, reading together.

That was another thing she'd noticed about Nanao too. Since Ukitake's visit, she'd been seeking solitude out in the garden a lot more. Rangiku generally allowed Nanao to have her space. However she did send Kotaro out to her quite a bit to keep an eye on her. Kotaro was a good kid, he would come and tell her if he thought Nanao was getting sleepy or anything.

Rangiku heard the front door open and close, "Hello! Anyone home?" Toushiro's voice called from the hallway.

"I'm in Kotaro's room," she called back.

Within seconds Toushiro entered his sons room and stepped over to Rangiku for a hug, "The house is too quiet," he commented as he ran kisses up Rangiku's throat, "Where's Kotaro?"

"He's in the garden keeping Nanao company," Rangiku pointed through the window, "They're in their usual spot. It seems she's been doing that a lot lately."

"Do you think she's all right?"

"I don't know," Rangiku sighed and sat herself down on Kotaro's bed, "She was doing fine, but since Ukitake spoke with her, its like she's going backwards again. I really hope she's okay."

"Didn't you say that Unohana was going to be paying her a visit tomorrow?" Toushiro knelt down on the floor and began picking up crayons that Kotaro had left lying around, "Maybe Unohana can get her to open up a bit and see what's troubling her."

"Yeah, maybe you're right," Rangiku began tossing Kotaro's discarded clothes into a laundry basket, "Do you want me to call Kotaro in?"

"Nah leave him outside with Nanao for a bit, I wanted to talk to you anyway."

"About what?"

Toushiro pulled a slip of paper out of his haori pocket, "I've managed to get authorization for both you and me, to travel to the World of the Living. Just for the day, so we can buy Kotaro a few gifts."

"That's brilliant Toshi," Rangiku's face lit up and she smiled a wide smile, "When can we go, at the weekend?"

"Err not exactly," Toushiro only hesitated slightly, "Its a bit sooner then that."

"How soon?"

"Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow!"

"Yes tomorrow," Toushiro repeated, "It was either go tomorrow, or we wouldn't have been able to go at all. Are you okay with that?"

Rangiku sighed, "I guess I'll have to be."

"I'm sorry. Its rather short notice, but seeing as Kotaro's Birthday is next week I didn't exactly want to pass up this opportunity."

"No it'll be okay, I'm just wondering what to do about Kotaro though."

"I know what you mean," Toushiro got to his feet and stepped over to the window, "Nanao's suppose to be resting and recuperating, is it really fair to leave her in charge of Kotaro for a whole day? Maybe we could ask Ukitake if he wouldn't mind watching over him for the day, so Nanao can get her rest."

Rangiku came up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her chin on his shoulder, "True, but haven't you noticed how much calmer she seems to be whenever she's with Kotaro? Maybe she will be okay."

"Yeah maybe," Toushiro fell deep into thought.

"How about we just ask Nanao how she feels about it?" Rangiku pointed out, "If she feels up to it, great. If she doesn't we'll ask Captain Ukitake," she glanced at Toushiro and saw his brow furrowing in thought, "What are you thinking?"

"We'll ask Nanao if she's comfortable with the idea. If she is then that will be fine," Toushiro replied a few seconds later, "But I think I'd like to ask Ukitake if he could drop in to see that they're okay at some point. Don't get me wrong, I trust Nanao to look after Kotaro. But its just in case she has an off day or feels sick."

Rangiku considered that idea, "Hmm, Captain Unohana will be paying her a visit just before lunch too. So its not like they'll be entirely on their own for the whole day. We could maybe ask Captain Ukitake to drop by in the afternoon. All the shops close about five pm in the Living World so its not like we'll be gone too long. Plus if we leave early in the morning hopefully it wont be too busy with the humans in school or at work."

"Right," Toushiro agreed, "Lets ask Nanao and see how she feels about it, then I'll send Ukitake and Unohana a message."

"Sounds like a plan," Rangiku dumped another pile of clothes in the laundry basket and sighed, "Lets go and ask her now, I think I'm fighting a losing battle in here anyway."

* * *

><p>The next day Rangiku was hovering by the front door feeling rather reluctant to leave, "Are you sure you don't mind Nanao?" She asked for the hundredth time, since asking Nanao the day before.<p>

"Rangiku its okay, try not to worry," Nanao rested her hand on Kotaro's head and buried her fingers in his soft white locks, "Me and Kotaro will be absolutely fine."

"Mummy just go!" Kotaro wrapped his arms around Nanao's legs and held onto her tightly, "I'll look after Auntie Nan-nan I promise."

Rangiku sighed softly, Kotaro hadn't quite grasped the concept that it was Nanao who was suppose to be looking after him.

Toushiro entered the hallway checking his pockets, "Right I believe I have everything we'll need," he patted his pockets, "Phone, wallet, credit card... check. Are you ready to go Rangiku?"

Rangiku hesitated and glanced back at Nanao. She then stepped forward and pulled Nanao into a hug, "Thank you for doing this Nanao."

"Its okay Rangiku, just make sure you have fun shopping and don't rush back because you feel you have to."

She pulled away from Nanao and crouched down in front of Kotaro, "Sweetie be a good boy for Nanao okay."

"I am a good boy," Kotaro complained.

"I know you are," Rangiku leant closer to him and kissed him.

Kotaro squirmed and tried to wriggle free, "Mum..." he complained.

Rangiku chuckled and let him go, "Okay okay I'm letting you go now."

Toushiro stepped forward and ruffled his hair, "I'll see you later little man," he then turned to Nanao, "Thank you for doing this Nanao," he then opened the front door and stepped outside into the cool, crisp morning air.

A few minutes later Rangiku joined him and he held his hand out to her, "Shall we?"

She took his hand and within seconds they were shunpoing across the Seireitei heading for the main Senkaimon. Five minutes later they landed before the main gateway between the worlds and Toushiro turned towards Rangiku, "Its only for a day Rangiku, well.. Not even that, just a few hours really. Everything will be fine."

She nodded and stepped through the gateway with him.

When they emerged on the other side, they stood for a few minutes blinking in the dazzling early morning sun. The city was already bustling with early morning commuters heading to work and shop owners setting up for the day ahead.

Toushiro glanced at his watch and realised there was still a bit of time before the shops would be opening, "Lets grab our gigai's first and then how about we go for a coffee whilst we wait for the stores to open?"

"Sounds good," Rangiku shivered and reached for Toushiro's hand to help warm her own, "Will you be okay with your gigai, wasn't it a bit on the small side for you?"

Toushiro smirked, "Its okay I sent it in for a few modifications."

* * *

><p>"Rangiku you're staring again," Toushiro smirked at her over the rim of his coffee cup.<p>

"No I'm not," she pouted back and promptly gulped down a bit of coffee. She was secretly hoping that this motion would hide the fact that she was blushing slightly.

"You're blushing too," Toushiro pointed out, as observant as ever, "And trying to hide it behind your cup."

"This is not fair!" Rangiku whined and placed her cup back down the table, "You said, and I quote.. 'For a few modifications.' This is slightly more then a few modifications," Rangiku replied waving her hand at Toushiro.

"But you do like it, don't you?"

"Of course, its just.." Rangiku stared at him again, "Wow."

Toushiro took another sip of his coffee to hide his smirk. It was quite a rare occurrence to see Rangiku so gob-smacked and a little speechless. He was thoroughly enjoying it too.

After a few minutes Rangiku found her voice again, "I know your gigai was feeling a little on the small side... I understand why it needed a few modifications.. But this," Rangiku waved her hand at him again, "I guess I wasn't expecting this."

Toushiro chuckled slightly.

Rangiku cast her eyes over Toushiro's gigai for the hundredth time, taking in his new image. He'd always been notoriously short, standing at just four feet, four inches tall. Admittedly he'd grown a bit and his gigai had been feeling a bit tight on him. But to suddenly go from four feet, four inches to a staggering six feet of height. It was a bit of a shock, and took a bit to get used to his extra foot or so of height. Rangiku couldn't get over the fact that she now had to look up to him. The changes didn't just stop at his height though. His gigai was also carrying some extra weight in the form of muscles. His face looked a lot more mature too and his jaw line was to die for. If Rangiku squinted, she could also see a light dusting of stubble too.

"Toushiro," Rangiku spoke in an even tone, "Not that I'm complaining or anything, but why?"

Toushiro placed his coffee cup down and sighed, "Lets just say, our last visit here really got to me on so many levels."

"You mean that pompous security guard in the subway," Rangiku started to count off on her fingers, "And that little old lady. And that-"

"Yes.. I think we get the point Rangiku," Toushiro cut her off.

"But I don't understand," Rangiku cocked her head to one side, "You never used to let things like that bother you before. Why now?"

Toushiro was quiet for a very long time before he replied, "Because I want to be treated like a husband and a father when we come here for our vacation with Kotaro. I want to enjoy spending time with my family. The last thing I want is people mistaking me for your son and Kotaro's big brother," he grouched, "Or mistaking me for a kid in front of Kotaro."

Rangiku gave him a sympathetic smile and reached for his much larger hand, "You shouldn't let other peoples perceptions bother you so much. For what its worth, I like you just the way you are," she leant across the table and kissed him on his lips, "I understand why you've done it though, and I'm not exactly complaining either." Rangiku felt as though a change of topic was in order, "Hey I think that toy shop over the street is going to be opening any minute."

Toushiro swivelled around in his seat and glanced over his shoulder, "So what exactly do you have in mind for Kotaro's present? You never did get around to telling me."

Rangiku downed the rest of her coffee and rose to her feet grabbing her bag, "Oh you know, maybe a scooter or a bike or something."

Toushiro got to his feet too towering above her, "A bike?"

"Yes," Rangiku reached for his hand and began walking out the coffee shop, "He's starting to want to do things like a big boy. I'm sure you've noticed. Well when we go out anywhere, rather then being lifted up and carried around he'd much rather walk of his own accord. Which I don't mind really, but because he cant shunpo yet."

"It takes forever to get anywhere in the Seireitei," Toushiro concluded, "He's got short legs."

"Exactly," Rangiku paused and glanced both ways before stepping out into the road to cross the street, "I've been teaching him how to shunpo but he just doesn't seem to be grasping it yet."

"A bike, hmm," Toushiro seemed to go deep into thought, after several seconds he smiled at Rangiku, "I like it, but I would still like to get another football for Kotaro, his other one is looking a bit dog eared now. I was also thinking about introducing him to baseball."

Rangiku paused in her walking, "Just as long as said balls don't smash any windows."

"They wont," Toushiro defended, "I think Kotaro's more likely to crash into something on his new bike, then smash a window with a ball."

Rangiku sighed, "We'll get him a crash helmet and pads too. If we don't I'm sure Captain Unohana would have something to say about that."

"Well lets just have a look around anyway," Toushiro grinned and pulled her into the toy store, "We might be better of finding an actual bike retailer who specialises in selling bikes and accessories though."

Rangiku just smiled and allowed herself to be pulled inside by Toushiro. She was happy to see him looking so happy and enthusiastic about visiting a toy store. Maybe the modifications to his gigai had given him a boost of confidence.

* * *

><p>Toushiro and Rangiku had been having a good wander around the toy shop, and in an hour they hadn't seen any bikes yet. The toy store was truly huge. Toushiro had seen many wonderful things that he knew Kotaro would like, however prior to stepping foot inside the toy shop, both he and Rangiku had agreed not to go over board. They didn't want to be the type of parents who spoiled their child rotten.<p>

They were nearing the end of an aisle that seemed to house all the different types of action figures, such as superman, spiderman, action man, the list went on and on. Toushiro thought his head was spinning, how do parents in the living world cope with multiple children all with access to televisions and the infamous ads that went along with them? In a way, he and Rangiku were lucky to not be of this world. The Head-Captain was never too strict on what could or couldn't be brought into the Soul Society from the living world. Toushiro knew he could easily have brought in a television by now if he'd wanted, but he knew the effects they could have on some people. They were addictive time wasters that turned people lazy. No way was he going to introduce Kotaro to one.

"Ahh here we Toushiro," Rangiku's gentle voice pulled him out of his internal one man rant, "We've reached the outdoor play section."

"Great," Toushiro's enthusiasm went up a few notches, "Can you see any footballs yet?"

"Err over there I think," Rangiku pointed to the left and Toushiro caught her wrist and began pulling her along behind him."

Nearing the stands with the footballs, Toushiro was amazed to see such a large selection. They had a selection of club footballs which had certain teams logo's printed on the balls, there was a huge variety of different colours and sizes, there were even balls with different cartoon characters printed on them, "Oh wow there's so many to choose from."

Rangiku giggled, "And that shocks you? This place is huge Toshi, why is it such a surprise that they have a huge selection. What style of ball was you planning on getting anyway?"

"Just your every day run of the mill, white and black football."

"Then I guess we need the 'Classics' section," Rangiku reached for his hand and started walking further down the aisle. She'd only taken a few steps when she felt Toushiro stop, she glanced over her shoulder to look at him. The reason why Toushiro had stopped was because he'd spotted a ball that appeared to completely entrance him, "Toshi?"

"Check this out," he reached for the boxed ball and turned it to show Rangiku. It was a plain white ball with orange, Chinese style dragons printed on it in place of the traditional black spots.

"Oh that's rather nice," Rangiku stepped closer and looked the ball over, "And I assume you picked orange because of Kotaro's Zanpakuto spirit?"

A shop assistant that chose that moment to pass them by in the aisle, threw them a funny look at Rangiku's mention of a 'Zanpakuto spirit.' As the shop assistant walked away, Rangiku could have sworn she heard him mumbling something about, 'Weird parents letting their weird kids believe in anything weird.'

Rangiku just shrugged the comment off. Who was he to judge what was weird, and what was not.

"Yes, I think that's why it caught my eye," Toushiro continued nonplussed by the assistants comments, "Look," he turned the box over, "It can even be personalized, we cold have Kotaro's name printed on it."

"That would be a lovely idea," Rangiku smiled and clapped her hands together, "Pop it in the trolley."

Toushiro complied and they continued on with their search. They soon came across a baseball set which included a bat, a set of three balls, a catching mitt and some bases, which also went into the trolley. A few more aisle later they came across a wide selection of helmets and safety pads for a variety of sports and managed to find a nice set that would fit Kotaro's tiny frame. According to the humans size charts. Kotaro was roughly the size of a two to three year old. Rangiku had luckily and discreetly managed to get his measurements before they'd set out earlier.

"So all we need to find now, is some sort of wheels for Kotaro," Toushiro mentioned as he glanced at the items in the trolley.

"Absolutely, just a nice little bike or maybe a scooter if we have no luck finding a bike."

"Do you think they'll sell any here?" Toushiro asked as they rounded the next corner.

"Oh I'm sure they... Wooow," Rangiku trailed off and Toushiro paused on the spot to take in the sight. They had reached the back corner of the shop which was a large open space, where rows upon rows of scooters, bikes, mini cars and all other manner of kiddy transport was all set up on display to be viewed.

"I'll take that as a yes," Toushiro smirked.

"Oh gosh where do we start?" Rangiku asked as she scanned her eyes over the area. She felt her arm tug as Toushiro began dragging her down a particular path, "Cool look at them, can you imagine Kotaro wearing something like that?"

Rangiku glanced at the plastic boot with four wheels lined up on the bottoms, "What are they?"

"In-line skates apparently," Toushiro replied glancing at the label.

"EXCUSE ME!"

They both whipped around in time to see a kid go hurtling past them on the exact same pair of skates, with an harassed looking father chasing after him, "STOP STOP!"

"HOW!" The kid screamed.

CRASH.

Toushiro and Rangiku stared in shock as the kid came to an abrupt stop by crashing into a display of piled up boxes, which exploded and scattered their contents everywhere. It was pandemonium as his father tried digging him out and shop assistants ran to help.

Toushiro placed the skate back down, "Maybe not."

Rangiku started pulling him along again, "Lets check out the bikes. I believe you can buy stabilizers to help in finding balance on a bike."

"Good idea," they both headed over to the section of bikes, tuning out the chaos from behind them.

Rangiku released Toushiro's hand and wandered over to the kiddy section of bikes. There was a huge selection to choose from all ranging from small tricycles up to much larger bicycles. Toushiro came up behind Rangiku and wrapped his arm around her waist, "Has anything caught your eye yet?"

"I had no idea there were so many different styles and sizes," Rangiku frowned, "What would be the most practical and ideal for him."

"Well," Toushiro began as he cast his eyes over the display, equally unsure.

"Would you like any help Sir?" Toushiro turned around to see a young shop assistant standing behind him, "You and your wife seem a little unsure about what you're looking for."

Toushiro noted with amusement that for the first time ever in the Living World, someone had actually gotten it right and assumed that Rangiku and himself were married, "Yes we would like some help," Toushiro replied, "My wife would like to buy a bike for my sons birthday, but we're not really sure what to get him."

"Say no more," the shop assistant whipped out a clipboard then began asking a barrage of questions, ranging from what sort of kid Kotaro was, and to what sort of terrain and area they lived near.

Toushiro allowed Rangiku to take the lead on this, and while she was chatting with the assistant, he began wandering off and browsing at a few more things. He trusted Rangiku's judgement and knew that she would pick something appropriate.

* * *

><p>When Toushiro returned to Rangiku some time later, it was to find the shop assistant lifting a fairly large box into the trolley.<p>

"So I take it you've reached a decision then?" He asked as he drew closer.

"I have," Rangiku smiled, "Kotaro's going to love it," she reached for his hand and started guiding him to a small bike that was sitting a few spaces down from where they were standing, "Its this one, what do you think?"

Toushiro took the time to cast his eyes over it, taking in the black leather seat and handle bars, the wheels and the peddles, the sturdiness of the frame and the overall design, "Its perfect," Toushiro smiled, "I like the colour."

"Its rocket red according to the specifications," Rangiku beamed as she consulted the sheet in her hands, "It comes complete with two training wheels, a front and rear reflector light and a bell," she leaned her head closer to Toushiro and whispered, "That guy even threw in a complimentary bike pump and puncture repair kit too," she gave him a cheeky wink and grinned, "Now that's customer service for you," she commented in a falsely innocent tone.

"Indeed," Toushiro replied with sarcasm.

After thanking the shop assistant, they headed for the tills to pay for their purchases. Once they were outside again Toushiro checked his watch and was surprised to see that they'd been in the toyshop for two and a half hours.

"What time is it?" Rangiku asked as she slipped her hand into Toushiro spare hand. His other arm was supporting the large bike box that he'd tossed onto his shoulder.

"Just after eleven-thirty," he replied glancing around the street, "Is there anywhere else you want to go? I was thinking about maybe grabbing some lunch soon. Unless you want to head back early of course."

"Well," Rangiku began, "We need to pick up some wrapping paper..." Rangiku trailed off and a wide grin spread across her face, "Oh! That will be perfect!"

"Huh? What is it?" Toushiro asked swivelling his head around.

Rangiku pointed at a small shop several metres up the street.

"A bath and body shop?"

"Yes, I wanted to get Nanao a little something," she pulled on Toushiro's arm and started heading for the shop, "Just a little thank you gift for looking after Kotaro and as a little pick me up for her," they crossed the road, "I can tell she's been feeling a bit down lately."

Toushiro's stomach growled, "Sure no problem, but can we get some lunch afterwards."

"Of course we can," Rangiku replied breezily before disappearing into the shop leaving Toushiro to awkwardly hold all of the bags.

"Tch, go figure," he said to no one in particular when he realised what had happened. He found a nice quiet corner and placed all the shopping bags and the large box down on the floor. Glancing around the small but packed shopped, he realised that he was the only guy in the whole place. This certainly was a shop that catered solely to woman. Looking at the shelves, he noticed all sorts of girly things. Bath bombs (whatever they were) that were shaped like little cupcakes and hearts and stars, bars of prettily decorated soaps, candles, face masks, bath sponges, bottles and bottles of stuff that Toushiro assumed to be bubble bath, lotion, moisturiser all in a large variety of scents. Toushiro took a deep breath and nearly sneezed from the combined aromas of everything in the store. He glanced around for Rangiku and saw her piling all sorts of things into a basket.

Toushiro sighed warily and sank down onto a chair. He guessed that he was going to be here for a long time, so he may as well make himself comfortable.

His stomach rumbled loudly and he rested his hand over it, "I hate shopping," he mumbled to himself quietly.


	39. Chapter 39

Hello everyone, thank you to the people who reviewed the last chapter. I'm glad you enjoyed it. Happy Reading ^_^

* * *

><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 39<p>

"_You lost the Captain!" Sentaro roared at Kiyone._

"_I didn't lose him you jerk!" Kiyone snarled back._

"_So then where is he? If you haven't lost him then you should know where he is!"_

"_I haven't lost him, I just cant find him at present!"_

"_Well then maybe you should start finding him them!"_

"_What do you think I've been doing for the past hour!"_

Ukitake was in fact sitting high up on a roof terrace surveying the large boundary wall of the Seireitei, that sat on the horizon before him. He felt a lone rain drop splash onto his cheek but he chose to ignore it, along with the thick dark blanket of cloud looming high above him.

He was sitting downwind of the boundary wall and every time the wind blew, he was sure he kept catching a whiff of Hollow. There certainly was a heavy feel to the air today. He closed his eyes and tuned out every thing that was surrounding him.

It was hard to feel anything and determine whether there was in fact a Hollow waiting out there somewhere. There was another strong gust of wind and a slight rotting stench filled up his nose. It was only faint, which suggested that if there was indeed a Hollow, then it was a long ways off.

He opened his eyes again, taking in the large expanse of trees that sat on the outside wall. Maybe it was hiding and waiting for the right moment.

As he pulled his eyes away from the trees, he became aware of a second presense standing patiently on the roof behind him, "Good Afternoon Rukia."

"Good Afternoon Captain, I'm sorry if I'm disturbing you."

"Not at all Rukia," he glanced at her and gave her a smile, "I say, do you feel that Rukia?"

Rukia stepped forward and came to stand by his side. She too scanned the horizon and took the time to seek with her senses, "Yes, should we be concerned about it Captain?"

"Its been out there for a while now, its not made a move yet."

"I see," Rukia's hand came to rest on the handle of her Zanpakuto.

"As long as it stays outside the boundary, its no threat to us," Ukitake's eyes landed on the large expanse of trees again, "Yet."

"We should keep tabs on it though Captain, just in case."

"Very good Rukia," Ukitake turned on his heel but before he swept away he glanced at her again, "I shall be visiting the Tenth in an hour or so, in the mean time I'll be in my office."

"Yes Captain."

With that said he jumped easily off the roof and landed neatly on the ground below, before heading off for the office. As he made it inside his office, thick raindrops started to pelt against the windows.

It wasn't only just Ukitake and Rukia that'd felt something a bit off. Shinigami all around the Seireitei were pausing and glancing to the sky, each feeling something ominous in the air, that had nothing to do with the approaching thunderstorm. Not a single Shinigami was going about their business today without their swords close at hand.

* * *

><p>The only two people in the Soul Society who were unaware of the situation happened to be Nanao and Kotaro, who were both snuggled up together on the couch napping peacefully.<p>

The thing that woke them up was a loud rumble of thunder, Nanao snapped awake to hear rain splattering heavily against the windows. She glanced down at her lap and saw Kotaro lift his head sleepily, "Auntie Nan-nan?" He asked sleepily.

"Its okay Kota-kun," she reached out her hand and started stroking his hair, "Its just a thunderstorm."

A flash of lightening lit up the living room, followed by a crack of thunder that made Kotaro jump and let out a small gasp.

"Don't be scared Kotaro," Nanao soothed.

"I'm not scared," he protested back, "I love thunderstorms!" He had a huge grin on his face as he said this, until it slipped off to be replaced by a frown, "Oh no!"

"What is it?" Nanao asked tilting her head to one side.

"I left Yori outside," Kotaro glanced towards the window, "What if he gets wet and catches a cold?"

Nanao also glanced out the window, "I don't think you should go outside in that Kotaro, you might catch a cold too."

"But I'll be really fast," Kotaro pleaded.

Nanao smiled at Kotaro, "Try not to get too wet okay," she got to her feet, "I'm going to make a cup of tea, would you like some juice?"

Kotaro nodded then hurried over to the back door and pulled it open.

Nanao got to her feet and walked into the kitchen. Just as she was debating whether or not to have green or peppermint tea, a loud commotion filled her ears and it took her a moment to recognise it as the Seireitei's main alarm system sounding off. The loud TAP TAP TAP of wood against wood ensured everyone heard it. Next there was the sound of chiming as thousands of hell butterflies materialized throughout the Seireitei, in order to quickly convey and spread the word of the impending emergency.

Nanao abandoned making herself a cup of tea in order to listen closely. Her frown deepened as the message played on. The Seireitei was being invaded by a large swarm of Hollows.

She abandoned what she was doing and made to hurry out into the garden to get Kotaro back inside. However, she'd only taken five steps when she heard his screams pierce the air.

"Kotaro!" She shouted as she hurried outside, fuelled on by a sudden surge of adrenaline. Once she'd made it outside she scanned around the garden for Kotaro.

"Auntie Nan-nan," Kotaro shouted as he came bombing back across the garden clutching Yori to his chest tightly, "I saw something!"

Nanao met him halfway and latched onto his wrist, "Kotaro you must come back inside right now," she ordered in what she realised to be her Lieutenants voice.

"What's going on?" Kotaro asked sounding slightly distressed.

A rumble of thunder rolled above their heads which was followed by a crack of lightening, over the noise Nanao could have sworn she heard a shriek. She paused in her ushering of Kotaro for a second to glance back over her shoulder. Was there a Hollow nearby? She cursed herself for not being able to sense anything lately, she felt blind not being able to sense anything, "What did you see Kotaro?"

"A shadow was moving over the ground," Kotaro answered as he was pulled along by Nanao, "I looked up and I saw something flying in the sky."

Nanao stopped again and looked down at him, "What did it look like?"

"I don't know, it had a white face and a dark body."

"Lets get you back inside right now," she tugged on his arm to get him to walk again.

"Auntie Nan-nan why is the alarm going off? Is something bad happening? Ooof!"

"Kotaro?" Nanao stopped when she felt Kotaro's grip slip from her hand. Glancing down she saw him sprawled on the wet grass, "What happened?"

"I slipped!"

Nanao plucked him off the ground, placed him back on his feet and turned back towards the house, she'd only been outside for a matter of seconds and she was already soaked to the bone. When she glanced up, wiping at her glasses furiously so she could see, it was to find a large Hollow blocking their path.

Kotaro's eyes went wide when he caught sight of it and let out a scream, "Auntie Nan-nan its that thing again!" He tried to run away but Nanao held onto his wrist firmly keeping him by her side.

"Kotaro don't panic, it will be all right," Nanao knew she couldn't feel anyone's reiatsu, and she knew from Rangiku that Kotaro's powers had recently emerged. Which meant that they were immature and easily effected by his moods. If he panicked now, it would likely act as a beacon and other Hollows could be drawn to their location. The only problem being that she couldn't actually sense for herself if that was actually happening to him, "Just take a deep breath and stay calm for me okay," she then stepped in front of Kotaro to shield him from the Hollow and slipped into a stance.

Nanao tried to get a reading on the Hollow but felt frustrated when she couldn't even pick out whether it was a low level Hollow or a higher level Hollow.

"Auntie Nan-nan," Kotaro had wrapped his arms around one of her legs clinging on tightly.

Nanao ran her right hand up her left sleeve and felt the comforting presense of her Zanpakuto strapped to her left forearm. The Hollow was large with big bulky arms and she knew getting too close would be risky, given the small size of her sword. Unohana's warning about using kido and how dangerous it would be for her and the baby rang clear in her mind. She knew she couldn't use her Shikai either, not with Kotaro being so close by. It was too dangerous. Her Shikai was deadly at the best of times given its nature, hence why she hardly used it.

The Hollow let out a deafening roar and Nanao felt Kotaro jump quite a bit.

Nanao raised and stretched her arm out, palm facing the Hollow. Kido it will have to be. She knew full well what the consequences could be, but she had a duty to protect Kotaro.

"Auntie Nan-nan what are you doing?" Kotaro asked sounding panicked, "Gran-Gran said no Kido!"

"We don't have a choice Kotaro," Nanao saw the Hollow lunge forward towards them, taking advantage of Nanao's momentary distraction. She grabbed Kotaro by the scruff of his neck and hopped out the way with Shunpo. However, her available reiatsu was limited and she only managed to hop a few metres away. She knew her reserves were still low, and it would be questionable as to whether or not she could even pull off a kido spell.

She adjusted her stance and raised her palm towards the Hollow again.

"Auntie Nan-nan! There's another one!" Kotaro screamed again.

Nanao felt a huge gust of wind kick up and vaguely remembered hearing that Kotaro's power seemed to be wind based. As she'd expected Kotaro's power was affected by his mood, and he seemed to be losing his limited control over it in his fear, "Kotaro, take a deep breath in through your nose and slowly exhale through your mouth," she instructed calmly. She heard him comply, "Keep doing that okay."

Yes Kotaro's powers had emerged. But at the end of the day, he was still just a small child. Unfortunately Nanao didn't have the time to comfort him just yet. She had to deal with this Hollow standing before her, and then the second one that'd turned up too. It seemed they were indeed attracted to Kotaro's pressure.

Nanao estimated that she had enough power to maybe fire off one higher level kido spell, and maybe one, possibly two lower level ones. Maybe. She couldn't be sure.

Glancing between the two Hollows it seemed that they were trying to circle her and get behind her. She determined that the second Hollow that'd showed up, seemed to be the weaker of the two.

Aiming at the large Hollow she started to form the spell for Sokatsui, giving it a bit of extra juice for fire power, while at the same time her other hand was aimed at the smaller Hollow. Double casting was a very tricky aspect of kido. Done right and it could be used as a surprise attack. Done wrong, well the least said the better. As for attempting it whilst pregnant when ones reiatsu was already unstable, was plain irresponsible. Nanao pushed those doubts aside, she needed to protect Kotaro.

The Sokatsui spell peaked, and at the last second she formed a Shakkaho with her other hand and sent them hurling at the same time. The fiery red Shakkaho connected with the lower level Hollow and instantly disintegrated it. While the eerie blue Sokatsui crashed into the Higher level Hollow with such force that it exploded on impact and threw up a large dust cloud.

Kotaro stumbled backwards onto the ground with a thud and Nanao was forced to throw up her arms to shield her eyes from the dust. Through parted eyes she tried to see though the cloud of dust to see what had become of the Hollow.

She coughed and felt herself sway slightly. Yes those two spells had taken a bit out of her.

Kotaro was coughing and spluttering behind her, "Kotaro, are you okay?"

"That was so COOL Auntie Nan-nan!"

Before she had time to comment further, a loud shriek reached her ears and now that the dust cloud was clearing she could see that the larger Hollow was still alive.

"ITS STILL ALIVE!" Kotaro squealed.

Nanao shushed him, she needed to think. Could she manage that higher level spell? She flexed her main kido hand and felt sharp needles of pain running through her fingers.

She raised her palm again and started to chant the incantation for a Soren Sokatsui this time. As the spell was forming and gaining power she felt her stomach knot painfully. She bared with the pain and focused on completing the spell. As soon as the spell had peaked she shot it forwards with deadly accuracy. The spell collided head on with the Hollow and exploded with such force, Nanao herself nearly lost her balance when the shock-wave washed over her.

Nanao felt her whole body grow heavy and weak. It suddenly became quite difficult to breathe, as though the remainder of her strength had left her upon releasing that final spell. Her head swam sickeningly and through blurry vision she saw the remainder of the Hollow disintegrate into particles.

She closed her eyes and sank down onto all fours trying to draw some air into her lungs.

"Auntie Nan-nan what's wrong?" Kotaro padded over to her and hugged her from behind, "Are you okay?"

Nanao peeped her eyes open to see her hands glowing a soft purple colour, and black smoky tendrils clawing up from her knees. She felt sick to her stomach and she could see black spots forming in her vision. She knew she was going to black out and there was nothing she could do about it.

"Kotaro..." she muttered before slumping to the ground.

* * *

><p>"Auntie Nan-nan! Auntie Nan-nan!" Kotaro cried as he tried shaking Nanao's prone form awake, feeling very scared. His eyes were blurring with tears and his hands were shaking as panic gripped his body.<p>

All around him he was aware of several different pressures clashing, and the air was thick with the rotting smell of garbage. Here he was on his own and he had no clue what to do.

He clamped his hands over his ears, all around the Division he could hear the clashing of swords, yells, shouts, shrieks and an odd roaring sound that didn't go away, despite covering his ears.

"I don't know what to do," he cried to himself, his whole body was starting to tingle and a strong wind started to whip around him.

The ground beneath him shook as another large Hollow landed several metres away from him. It took one look at him, roared then started charging. Kotaro gasped and flung himself at Nanao burying his face in her robes, shaking.

He heard a deafening crash of metal, a loud grunt, some cursing and another hellish shriek from what Kotaro assumed to be the Hollow. He heard the sounds of a scuffle and with a particularly loud clunk of a sword, the Hollow let out and ear piercing shriek and everything else fell quiet for a few seconds, before more shrieks and roars sounded nearby.

"Kotaro."

Kotaro gasped when he heard the familiar voice and glanced up.

"Don't be crying now little buddy, I need you to keep an eye on Nanao-chan for a moment."

Kotaro stared back dumbstruck.

"Look after her for me, I'm counting on you."

Kotaro gave a little nod and watched in awe as Hollow after Hollow started to disintegrate before his eyes. It was impossible to keep track of his Uncles movements.

There was a loud shriek from behind him, he whipped his head around and came face to face with another Hollow. Before he'd even had the chance to scream, a blade sliced cleanly through its face which dispatched it before it even became a problem. When the last few particles had dissipated and vanished, Kotaro saw that the end of the blade belonged to Ukitake, "Grandad!"

"Kotaro you need to calm yourself down," Ukitake replied in a soothing voice, "You've been very brave, but I'm afraid its your reiatsu that's attracting all of these Hollows now."

Kotaro saw a flash of light and he covered his eyes. He blinked a few times to clear them and when he opened them again, it was to find himself and Nanao encased in an orange barrier.

With nothing more to do he watched in utter amazement as his Grandad and Uncle quickly dealt with the remaining Hollows. Kotaro was still shaking but rather then feeling panicked like before, he was now feeling a sense of excitement as he watched the masters in action.

All to soon the action came to an end and Kotaro was stood before Ukitake and Shunsui in complete awe.

Ukitake swept down and lifted Kotaro into his arms, while Shunsui scooped Nanao up into his arms. Kotaro was soaked through from the rain and covered in mud, Nanao seemed no different either.

"Nanao-chan," Shunsui swept Nanao's wet hair out of her face and sighed heavily, "She's in a bad way Juu."

"She was glowing purple," Kotaro commented as he glanced between Shunsui and Ukitake with a very concerned look on his face.

Shunsui and Ukitake exchanged a look.

"I've sent word to Retsu, she'll be here as soon as possible," Ukitake ruffled Kotaro's hair, "Now lets get them inside."

* * *

><p>"I cant remember the last time I had so much fun!" Rangiku chirped as she bounced along happily beside Toushiro.<p>

Toushiro gave her hand a little squeeze in agreement, it certainly had been an enjoyable day and the lunch they'd ended up having had been to die for.

They were both having a steady walk back through the precipice world, Toushiro was carrying the bulk of their purchases while Rangiku was holding a small gift box of little things that she'd bought for Nanao. Toushiro wasn't grumbling too much about carrying everything, however it was a bit of a struggle now that he was back to his normal height. His Gigai's arms had been a lot longer and stronger.

Once they'd reached the gate that led into the Soul Society and had stepped back onto their home turf, they both paused when they felt the thickness in the air.

"Toushiro," Rangiku began.

"I know, something has happened while we've been away," Toushiro could feel the remnants of many different spiritual pressures, some very strong that belonged to Captains and Lieutenants, and some very weak that belonged to the lower levelled inhabitants. There was also the all to familiar stench of Hollow lingering in the air.

"Can we shunpo back?" Rangiku's eyebrows knitted together when she sensed the majority of the lingering pressures seemed to be situated around the Tenth, "It feels as though-"

"Yes, I feel it too," Toushiro adjusted his grip on the things he was carrying in his arms, "Lets go."

They both landed in the Tenths courtyard at the same time. Glancing around they saw that a good majority of the fighting must have happened in this area. They both recognized several of their Division members lingering reiatsu signatures. Toushiro noticed with relief that the surrounding buildings and grounds appeared to have only minimal damage.

"Judging by the remnants of pressure it feels like it was a whole swarm of Hollows," Rangiku surmised.

Toushiro paused, "Rangiku."

"Yes?"

"I'm going to drop by the office and get the details."

"Sure, I want to go home to Kotaro," Rangiku's eyes dropped to all the bags and boxes in Toushiro's arms, "What about those?"

"I'll hide them in the office, we don't want little man seeing them yet anyway."

Rangiku stepped closer to him and kissed him on the cheek, "Come home soon though," she then stepped into shunpo and headed home.

Landing on the path outside their home, Rangiku nearly gagged when a strong smell of Hollow invaded her nostrils. The air also felt so much thicker with all the pressure, it seemed as though several pressures had combined into one thick blanket that felt smothering. It was hard to pick out anyone pressure. There was definitely a combination of Shinigami and Hollow.

She hurried over to the front door and pushed it open, stepping inside she called for Kotaro, "Sweetie?"

Silence.

Rangiku felt a knot form in her stomach, "Kotaro?" She called again.

"We're in here Rangiku," came Ukitake's soothing voice from the living room.

She relaxed slightly and hurried into the living room, "Where's Kotaro?"

Rangiku spotted Ukitake sitting on the couch with Kotaro curled up on his lap fast asleep. She also noticed that her son was wrapped up in his bath robe. She cocked her head to one side.

Ukitake sensing her question said, "I gave him a bath, he was a bit on the muddy side."

"What happened out there?" She asked stepping over to the second couch and plonking herself down without looking. She shot back to her feet when she felt someone beneath her and heard a loud grunt. "Oh my god Nanao I'm so sorry I didn't mean to sit on you."

"Yare Yare," Shunsui mumbled sleepily, wondering who'd sat on him.

Rangiku froze and spun around to face him, "Shunsui!"

"Hello Ran-chan," he grinned back as he sat himself up.

Rangiku launched herself at him and gave him the hug of death, "I'm so happy to see you back!"

Kotaro started to stir when he heard his mothers voice and he sat himself up rubbing at his eyes sleepily, "Is Mummy home?"

Rangiku released Shunsui, who flopped back down onto the couch gasping for breath, and turned to smile at her son, "Sweetie I'm home," she singsonged happily. She hopped over to the couch and sat down next to Ukitake.

Kotaro scrambled over Ukitake's lap to reach Rangiku for a hug. Rangiku pulled him onto her lap and wrapped her arms around him, letting him snuggle into her shoulder. She buried her nose in his hair and breathed in deeply, "You smell nice."

"Grandad gave me a bath."

"Did you miss me?" Rangiku asked softly as she ran a soothing hand up and down his back. Kotaro nodded into her shoulder and within seconds he'd nodded off back to sleep in the safety of his mothers arms.

She glanced between Ukitake and Shunsui and sensed something was wrong, she also realised Nanao wasn't with them.

"Where's Nanao? Did something happen? Where is she? And what happened out there? Were we attacked?"

"Nanao will be okay," came a soft voice from the living room door, they all glanced up to see Unohana gliding into the room.

"Retsu," Shunsui was on his feet in seconds and hurrying over to Unohana.

Unohana reached for his arm and guided him back to the couch. She made Shunsui sit down and took the seat next to him, "She will need plenty of rest."

"What about our baby?" Shunsui asked anxiously.

"I wont lie Shunsui, she very nearly lost it," Unohana reached for his hand and gave it a supportive squeeze, "But I've managed to stabilize them. Like I said, Nanao will need plenty of rest. Just using those three kido spells was enough to disrupt her system again."

"Nanao used kido!" Rangiku asked horrified, "Why? She knows its dangerous to do so."

"Rangiku, as you've rightfully noticed," Ukitake spoke up after clearing his throat, "While you and Toushiro were away, the Seireitei was invaded by a large swarm of Hollows," he paused and cleared his throat again, "It seemed a few of them made a beeline for Kotaro. Nanao was just simply doing what she had to do, to protect him."

Rangiku instinctively drew Kotaro closer to her.

"But obviously," Shunsui spoke up again, "She was a bit limited on what she could do given her condition, there was only so much she could do."

"Fortunately," Ukitake continued, "Shun and myself got there in time to help them out."

Rangiku slid her eyes closed and nodded gratefully, relieved that they'd showed up to help Nanao and Kotaro, "Thank you," she then levelled her gaze on Shunsui, "When did you get back?"

"I was reporting in to Yama-jii when the alarm was raised. He deemed it an appropriate time to let me return," Shunsui clenched his fist, "However I do have to return to the First, he wants to discuss a few things with me."

"Does Nanao know that you're back yet?" Rangiku asked feeling curious.

"No not yet, she was already unconscious when me and Juu arrived here," Shunsui seemed to be weighing something up in his mind, "I would go and see Yama-jii now, but I have no idea whether he's going to send be back to that god forsaken island again."

"I don't think he'll do that now Shunsui," Ukitake gave him a serious look, "Why don't you go and see him now, while Nanao's resting."

"But what if she-"

"She wont be waking up any time soon Shunsui," Unohana commented in a soft tone, "I have placed her under heavy sedation, she really does need her rest."

"How long is she likely to be out for?" Shunsui began picking at the sleeve of his black Shinigami robes, Rangiku thought it was very odd seeing him looking like a regular Shinigami without his usual hat, his Captains haori which was ominously absent and his customary pink haori. Although she knew Nanao to be in possession of that particular garment.

"Several hours."

"What if she wakes up during the night?" Shunsui frowned, obviously reluctant to leave Nanao after not being able to see her for close to three weeks.

"You're more then welcome to stay here Shun-kun," Rangiku offered, she really didn't mind at all.

They heard the front door open and a few seconds later Toushiro stepped into the living room, he quirked an eyebrow as he glanced around the room at them, "So, the official report at the office, is that the Seireitei was attacked by a swarm of Hollows."

"That pretty much sums it up Toushiro," Ukitake confirmed.

"My third seat also reported that you and Kyouraku turned up to lend a helping hand."

"That's also true kiddo," Shunsui nodded.

Toushiro folded his arms across his chest and scowled, "So which one of you is responsible for the vandalism in my ice garden?"

"Eh?" Ukitake answered dumbly, which was the only answer Toushiro needed, who then switched his gaze to Shunsui.

Shunsui rose to his feet, "I guess I should be running along to the First now," he replied in a singsong voice before vanishing.

"Just wait till he gets back," Toushiro threatened with a scowl.

"Don't be mad at him Toshi," Rangiku reached for his hand and pulled him down onto the couch next to her.

"He did save Kotaro's life," Ukitake added.

Toushiro was quiet for a moment, "The official report stated that the Hollows appeared to be drawn to Kotaro and that you two stepped in to help fend them off."

Ukitake nodded and sighed, "We only just managed to get here in time."

"Will you give me a full account of what actually happened?" Toushiro requested.

"Of course I will," Ukitake agreed, "But as for what happened before we arrived, you'll probably have to ask Kotaro, since Nanao's incapacitated for the time being."

Toushiro glanced at Kotaro and was glad to see his son safe and sound, he then sat back into he couch and made himself comfortable, "I'm all ears."

Ukitake glanced at Unohana, who rose elegantly to her feet, "I'll be watching over Nanao for a little while," she smiled calmly as she left the room.

Ukitake took a deep breath before launching into an explanation.

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><p>I hope you enjoyed this chapter, it was fun to write. As for the next chapter, one word...Reunion. That's going to be fun to write. See you next chapter! ^_^<p> 


	40. Chapter 40

Hello everybody, I've been working extra hard to get this chapter out for you. I cant believe we've reached chapter 40, (Still have no idea how many more chapters are left,) Theres still a few more things I'd like to cover before I type those two words 'The End' I would like to take a moment to thank everyone whose left me a review, and in some peoples cases - Multiple Reviews. This story has reached 200 reviews which I'm very grateful about, so a special thanks to BlackDesires for being my 200th reviewer. I wont keep you all much longer, I know how much you're all dying to read this chapter. Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 40<p>

It was early in the evening and Toushiro was sat on the floor of his study with his legs crossed under the low table. His eyes were skimming over the latest reports from his Division, regarding the Hollow attack from earlier.

The house was feeling a bit too crowded at the moment and he was craving some alone time. That's why he'd retreated to his study. Unohana was still watching over Nanao in the guest room, while Rangiku was having a good chat with Ukitake in the living room. There had been a rise in the volume of noise and Toushiro had assumed Shunsui had returned from the First. Both Rangiku and Ukitake had been talking excitedly. Toushiro assumed that Shunsui's talk with the Head-Captain must have gone well he surmised. He tuned out the noise and returned his focus back to the report in his hand.

The more details he read in the report, the more he cursed at not being there at the time for Kotaro. At this point, each passing line just deepened his feelings of guilt. Not only had Kotaro been in danger but Nanao had also been thrown into the position of having to protect him. Given her current condition, that was both unfair and down right dangerous.

Toushiro looked up from the report when he heard the soft creak of a floorboard outside his study door, "If you want to come in Kotaro, that's fine."

The door opened a crack and Kotaro's teal eyes stared back at him. It was always like looking in a mirror Toushiro mused. But instead of seeing himself as he is now, it was like looking at himself in his younger days.

"I'm actually allowed in Daddy's study?" Kotaro asked slightly surprised.

It was one of the boundaries he and Rangiku had set Kotaro from an early age. This was Toushiro's work space and a kid free zone.

"You are this time," Toushiro gave him a small glance, "I wanted to talk to you anyway."

Kotaro slid the door open a crack further and wiggled his body through the tight space with ease. He walked slowly over to Toushiro clutching Yori in his arm tightly.

"What are you doing Daddy?" Kotaro glanced at the low table and saw all the papers that he'd been reading through.

"Just going over a few reports little man," Toushiro smiled when Kotaro leant against his arm, and then rested his head against his shoulder, "Are you tired still?"

"A little bit," Kotaro admitted. He then stepped over Toushiro's leg and placed his foot in the space where Toushiro had crossed his legs. His other leg followed and he then perched himself on Toushiro's leg which made the perfect seat for him.

Toushiro wrapped his arm around Kotaro's side and continued to write with his other hand, "I just need to sign this Kotaro and I'm finished."

Kotaro waited patiently while Toushiro finished.

"Done," Toushiro declared a few seconds later as he placed his brush down on the table. He then returned his attention back to Kotaro, "Was there something you wanted to talk to me about?"

Kotaro nodded and started picking at Yori's tail.

Toushiro sighed, "You're upset about something."

Kotaro peered up at him but remained quiet.

"Are you upset about what happened earlier Kotaro?"

Kotaro blew air out of his mouth and pouted slightly, "I didn't know what to do," he answered sounding a little miserable.

"What do you mean?" Toushiro ran a soothing hand up and down Kotaro's back.

"Auntie Nan-nan was amazing, she wasn't even scared of those Hollows. She just blasted them to bits with kido. Then there was Uncle Shun-shun and Grandad, they sliced through everything with ease. They all knew what needed to be done, none of them were scared."

"Kotaro you're so young, its okay for you to feel scared in that situation," Toushiro reassured, "Its the first time you've ever seen a Hollow before, let alone a whole swarm like that."

"But when Auntie Nan-nan passed out, I didn't know what to do," Kotaro hugged Yori tighter, "I was scared because I didn't know what to do, I didn't know how I could help her."

"Oh," Toushiro gazed at his son with a slight frown, "Oh I see," all this time he'd assumed that Kotaro had been scared because of coming face to face with a real Hollow. It'd never occurred to him that he may have been scared because of a completely different reason.

"Daddy."

"Yes?"

"How do you know what to do in certain situations?"

Toushiro smiled, "It all comes down to experience and training."

Kotaro pouted, "I don't have any of them."

"One day you will, and it wont be a question of knowing what you should do. You'll just know what needs to be done, it will be instinct. I'll make sure of that, because I'll drill it into you until you can do it in your sleep."

"But what do I do in the mean time? What if it happens again?"

"Chances are it wont," Toushiro glanced out the window at the darkening sky, "But all the same, I think we should step up our little training sessions. Instead of once a week I was thinking of bumping it up to three times a week. And instead of an half hours session, I was thinking of making them full hours now. Mummy mentioned that you were struggling with Shunpo."

Kotaro screwed up his face, "I just don't get it."

Toushiro chuckled, "I thought that you would get it the first time, since you love going fast and doing the swish swish as you so call it."

"OH!" Kotaro bounced off Toushiro's knee, "That's what Shunpo is.. The swish swish thing."

"Yeah that's right," Toushiro frowned and cocked his head to one side, "Why what did you think it was?"

Kotaro shrugged, "I don't know, Mummy was explaining something about running."

"Ahh, well it does work on a similar principle," Toushiro was just about to begin explaining when Kotaro suddenly vanished and reappeared across the other side of the room.

"Like this Daddy?" Kotaro asked with a bright smile. He then vanished and reappeared next to Toushiro again. He was so light on his feet that he barely made any sound. Not even the distinctive swishing noise.

Toushiro stared back at him dumbfounded, "Yeah... How long have you been able to do that?"

Kotaro shrugged, "Ages?"

"How long?" Toushiro asked seriously.

"I kind of figured it out while you and Mummy were away on that mission. I was playing hide and seek with Grandad..." Kotaro stared back at Toushiro with a sheepish expression on his face.

"How did you figure it out?" Toushiro wasn't mad with him for cheating at a game, he was more intrigued by the fact that Kotaro appeared to have taught himself.

"I don't know, I just focused on where I wanted to go and concentrated on how it felt when I was sitting on your shoulders when you did the swish."

"I see," Toushiro was so amazed by the fact that Kotaro was shunpoing already, it also explained one or two instances where Kotaro had managed to sneak up on Rangiku and himself. He could Shunpo without making a sound, "Does Mummy know that you can actually do it?"

Kotaro shook his head innocently.

"Why don't you go and show her then?" Toushiro encouraged with a wicked smile on his face, "In fact, I think she's in the kitchen, why don't you see if you can sneak up on her again?"

Kotaro's face lit up.

"Okay I want you to Shunpo into the kitchen, then right back here again," Toushiro wanted to time him and see it for himself, "Ready?"

Kotaro nodded again and poised himself ready.

"Go!"

One second Kotaro was standing right before him, then without a sound he'd vanished.

"Wow that was fast," Toushiro spoke to the empty room. He heard a surprised squeal from he kitchen and in the next instance Kotaro was standing beside him again giggling.

"I made her jump Daddy!"

Toushiro heard hurried steps approaching his study, then the door swung open to reveal a slightly frazzled Rangiku, who had a massive wet patch down the front of her robes, "Kotaro Hitsugaya, you little snot!"

"But Daddy told me to do it!" Kotaro replied innocently.

Rangiku rounded on Toushiro, "Toshi!"

"Calm down," Toushiro held his hands up in surrender, "Kotaro just wanted to show you something that's all."

"Show me what?" Rangiku asked as she glanced back at Kotaro.

"I can do the swish swish thing without making the swish," he grinned and proceeded to show Rangiku.

"Thats great sweetie!" Rangiku beamed happily as Kotaro continued to whiz around the room. A few seconds later however the happy grin had been replaced with a frown, "Kotaro freeze."

Kotaro stopped and glanced at Rangiku, "What is it Mummy?"

"You can stop now sweetie," she glanced at Toushiro, "In fact why don't you fetch the cookies from the kitchen and see if Grandad and Uncle Shunsui would like one."

"Okay!" He grinned and vanished again.

"Toshi I think we need to make a few new house rules here."

"I agree with you completely."

"Will you come and join us now? You've been hiding in here for ages now," Rangiku whined and tugged his hand.

Toushiro sighed and pulled the papers on his desk into a neat pile, "Sure, I could use the break anyway."

Rangiku pulled him to his feet and led him back to the living room.

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><p>When they walked into the living room it was to find Kotaro giving Shunsui a monster hug. Rangiku noticed that Shunsui seemed to have freshened up a bit now. Earlier he'd been looking quite scruffy, with his usual dusting of stubble having grown quite a bit in the weeks he'd been away. The Shinigami robes he'd been wearing had looked worn and tattered, while his hair had been a tangled mess. When she'd hugged him earlier, she remembered him smelling quite bad. Rangiku certainly was curious as to where Shunsui had been all this time. Yes Shunsui could be a lazy drunk at times, but even he had standards of hygiene. He wouldn't have let himself go like that, had he been able to keep himself clean.<p>

Rangiku stepped over to the couch and sat herself down after prying Kotaro off Shunsui. She noticed that Shunsui was smelling much fresher now and that he was wearing a clean set of robes. She also noticed that he was once again wearing his Captains haori, "So," she began with a small smile, "I assume your talk with the Head-Captain went well?"

Shunsui gave her a small nod but remained quiet.

Unohana chose that moment to step into the room, "I thought I heard you arrive Shunsui," she sat herself down next to Ukitake, who reached for her hand and held it in his own.

"Well don't keep us in suspense," Ukitake sounded mildly exasperated, "What happened and what did the Head-Captain have to say?"

Shunsui glanced around, all eyes were on him now, "Well, Yama-jii seems to think that I've learned my lesson now. As you can see he's reinstated me as a Captain."

Ukitake nodded, "What else?"

"He's willing to let the whole matter drop now, provided I do just one thing," Shunsui fell silent, his gaze becoming distant.

It was tempting to prompt him to continue, however they all bit their tongues and waited patiently.

"Juu," Shunsui spoke up after several minutes of silence.

"What is it Shunsui?"

"Did you give Nanao that envelope for me?"

Ukitake nodded, "Yes but-"

"But what?" Shunsui had a rare look of worry on his face.

"But she hasn't opened it or seen what's inside yet it," Rangiku quickly added, she saw Shunsui relax instantly.

"Good," Shunsui slid his eyes closed and nodded, "That's good, but I'm going to need it back."

"Its on her bedside table Shun-kun," Rangiku had had her suspicions about that envelope for days now, "Its not that she's been ignoring its presense or anything, I think she was just simply worried as to what you'd written in it."

"Can I have it back please?"

Kotaro suddenly perked up and jumped off Rangiku's knee, "I'll get it for you," with that said he suddenly vanished again.

"Kotaro!" Both Rangiku and Toushiro called in unison.

Within seconds Kotaro was back in the room clutching the envelope with a pleased look on his face, "Got it."

Rangiku grabbed him and prised the envelope out of his hand, "Kotaro, just because you know how to Shunpo now, doesn't mean you can do it whenever you please."

"New house rule little man," Toushiro got up from the couch and plucked him off the floor, "No shunpoing while in the house," he sat back down on the couch and made Kotaro sit quietly on his knee.

However Kotaro wasn't content to sit quietly just yet, "Gran-Gran, Auntie Nan-nan's start-"

"Be quiet Kotaro, or I'll send you to your room," Toushiro interrupted before returning his attention back to the conversation. Kotaro pouted and crossed his arms over his chest sulking.

"Shunsui," Unohana spoke up not hearing Kotaro, "What does the Head-Captain want you to do?"

"He told me that, if I intend on having this child with Nanao then I'll have to make things official between us," Shunsui took the envelope from Rangiku and placed it securely inside his robes.

"And by official he meant marriage, correct?" Ukitake asked hiding a small smile.

"Yeah that's right Juu," Shunsui replied a little moodily.

"Shunsui how do you feel about that?" Unohana asked picking up on his subtle change of mood.

Shunsui sighed and rubbed at his eyes, "I love Nanao-chan. I was planning on asking her to marry me anyway, well before all of this happened. I want us to marry because we want to be together, and not just because we've been ordered to. Or because its considered the right thing to do in the given situation."

"So what are you saying then?" Rangiku was absent-mindedly twirling her hair around her finger, "Now that you've pretty much been ordered to marry Nanao, you don't want to marry her?"

"I do want to marry her," Shunsui defended, "I just don't like how Yama-jii is sticking his nose in and assuming things, that's all."

"Shunsui, surely the Head-Captain must have asked you for your thoughts on the matter first. He would've asked you what your intentions were. What did you tell him exactly?" Toushiro remembered being in a similar situation himself five years ago.

"I told him to keep his damn nose out of my personal life."

Toushiro blinked, "You did what?"

"He asked me what my intentions were," Shunsui recounted, "I told him it was non of his damn business and that he should keep his damn nose out of my personal life."

"You're an idiot," Toushiro retorted, "That WAS your opportunity to tell him that you planned on marrying Nanao. If you'd made it perfectly clear to him in the first place, then he wouldn't have made it an order."

"Toshi," Rangiku threw a warning look at him, Toushiro sighed and let the matter drop.

"Shunsui," Ukitake leaned forward in his seat, "Do you still plan on marrying Nanao?"

"Yes providing she agrees of course."

"Then just forget whatever the Head-Captain told you to do, and put it out of your mind," Ukitake cleared his throat and then added, "Just go about things like you'd originally planned."

Shunsui glanced at Unohana who smiled gently and added, "I don't think it should matter to anyone when and why you get married Shunsui. The only thing that matters is that you and Nanao are happy."

Rangiku decided to add her view on the matter, "I would suggest that you ask Nanao how she feels about the whole thing. I know Nanao, and we all know that she knows more about rules and regulations then any of us. She may even suspect something like this from the Head-Captain, considering its Shunsui we're talking about here," Rangiku glanced at Shunsui, "Sorry."

"No that's fair," Shunsui brushed off her apology, "In Yama-jii's eyes I have been reckless with my love life in the past. Normally he wouldn't bother sticking his nose in, but things are different this time."

Unohana nodded in agreement, "This time it involves a child, and a Lieutenant of the Gotei 13."

As the adults carried on talking, Kotaro found himself growing increasingly bored. He wiggle off Toushiro's knee and managed to slip out of the room without being noticed.

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><p>When Nanao blinked her eyes open, she groaned and draped her arm over her eyes. It wasn't particularly bright, but her head felt very heavy and sore. At least the bed she was laying on felt warm and comfortable. It took her a few moments to determine that she was in Rangiku's guest bedroom. Then literally a second later everything came crashing back to her.<p>

The storm, the alarm, the Hollow invasion, having to use kido to protect...

"Kotaro!" She cried out as she sat up far too quickly.

Her head started to spin, and once the room had stopped swirling she came face to face with two familiar teal eyes, "Auntie Nan-nan you're awake!"

Relief flooded through her, knowing that Kotaro was safe and well. Some sort of maternal instinct must have kicked in, because she reached her arms out and pulled him into a tight hug, "Oh thank goodness you're all right."

Kotaro was content to have a hug, but he soon wiggled free from Nanao's grasp, "Auntie Nan-nan, you have to come!"

Nanao tossed the bed covers off her legs and swung them over the edge of the bed, "Where?"

Kotaro padded around the bed and grasped her hand, "You have to come and see," his face was lit up in excitement.

Nanao felt her head swim and she stayed still for a minute, "I'll be there in a minute Kotaro, I just need a minute okay?"

Kotaro nodded and bolted out the door, saying something about 'Telling everyone she was awake'. Nanao sighed and cradled her head in her hands for a moment.

It was only after Kotaro had left, that she heard several voices floating down the hallway from the living room. She could hear Rangiku talking in her usual bubbly manner. Ukitake's smooth voice. Toushiro's serious tone. Unohana's calm and gentleness and Kotaro's excitement. It was nice having so many people she cared about close by.

Then she heard another voice. A very familiar voice.

"It couldn't be," she whispered to herself.

But like a moth to a flame, she felt drawn to that voice and before she knew it, she was on her feet and slowly heading for the bedroom door. She felt a chill having left the warm confines of her bed, and it was only then that she noticed somebody had changed her out of the clothes she'd been wearing earlier. Instead of her basic robes she'd been wearing, she was now wearing a thin, strappy nightie. Her hair was hanging loosely around her shoulders and she'd also forgotten to put her glasses on.

She thought about going back for her warm dressing gown and slippers but she heard his voice again and was overcome by a much more important task.

Nanao walked slowly down the hallway on wobbly legs, stopping every few steps when she felt herself going dizzy. After what felt like ages she finally entered the living room, having to stop to grip the door frame to keep herself from stumbling.

Everyone was so absorbed in their conversations that nobody noticed her right away, until Kotaro's head bobbed up from beside the couch. A massive grin broke out on his face and he rushed towards her, grabbing her hand to pull her into the room, "Auntie Nan-nan!"

All heads turned to her and she needed to squint to see everybody.

She saw Ukitake and Unohana sitting side by side on one of the couches, on the other couch sat Toushiro and Rangiku. Scanning frantically around the room, she felt a brick settle in her stomach when she realised Shunsui wasn't there.

Rangiku rose to her feet and stepped forwards, "Nanao are you okay? You look a little pale."

Unohana stood up too and stepped over to her, "How are you feeling?" She asked as she rested her hand against her forehead.

Nanao swallowed the lump in her throat and glanced once more around the room, "I thought I heard..." The little flicker of hope she'd felt had been quickly squelched. It'd become blatantly obvious that Shunsui wasn't there. She could feel her eyes beginning to heat up and she wanted to retreat back to the bedroom before any of them could see her cry, "I.. I'm going back to bed. I must've woken up funny."

Nanao quickly turned on the spot intending to leave, but she suddenly froze when she saw the way out was blocked. Standing there framed by the doorway was Shunsui holding two steaming cups of tea, grinning at her with his usual lopsided grin. His grin soon slipped off, to be replaced by a serious expression on seeing her face and the fact that she was close to tears.

Rangiku stepped forwards and relieved him of the cups and moved out of the way so Shunsui and Nanao had a bit of space.

The room and become so silent, everyone could have heard the proverbial pin drop.

"Nanao-chan," Shunsui broke the silence by calling her name gently.

A small sob caught in her throat and she lifted the back of her hand to her mouth to cover it, while her other arm wrapped itself around her waist.

Shunsui took one step closer to her and stopped. He slowly sank down to his knees and opened his arms wide, inviting her in for a hug, "I'm home Nanao-chan," he smiled tenderly.

Nanao took one step forward, followed by another and another until she'd closed most of the distance between them.

Shunsui saw her moving closer and closed his eyes, waiting for the moment when he felt her crash into his arms. That was until...

SLAP!

The sound echoed around the silent room and bounced off the walls.

Shunsui felt a familiar burning sting spread across his cheek. He wrenched his eyes open to find Nanao standing before him with her hand raised, panting heavily.

"You IDIOT!" She screamed at him, "Where have you been?" Her voice broke with emotion and her hand fell back to her side, "I was so worried," the tears started to pour thick and fast down her cheeks, and she crashed forwards and buried her face in the crook of his neck while sobbing loudly.

Shunsui was still in a state of shock from Nanao's slap and he raised his hand to his cheek rubbing it, he glanced at everyone else in the room and mouthed the word 'Ow.'

Ukitake just shook his head and gave him a look that said, 'You deserved that.'

"Yare Yare Nanao-chan," he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer, "I've missed you too."

The only thing Shunsui could do was to hold her and make soothing noises while she carried on crying. One or two tears had escaped his eyes too and were trailing down his cheeks.

Everyone else in the room averted their gazes to give the reunited couple a small shred of privacy. Although saying that, Rangiku couldn't help but throw them glances with a huge happy grin on her face. Toushiro caught Rangiku's eye and rolled his eyes at her. Ukitake was also shamelessly staring at them with an equally large smile on his face, to which Unohana just closed her eyes and shook her head.

The only person who wasn't showing any interest in what was currently transpiring was Kotaro, who'd actually fallen asleep and was currently snuggled up on a chair by the fire.

Shunsui was perfectly happy to remain where he was while comforting Nanao. It felt right to have her back in his arms, stroking her smooth black hair like he was doing. Words couldn't describe how much he'd missed her and how tortured he'd felt on that lonely lonely island, knowing he wasn't allowed to see her.

He felt her slight weight slump further into his shoulder and suspected that she'd been crying so much, that she may have exhausted herself and fallen asleep.

It seemed he wasn't the only one who'd noticed this. Unohana glided over to them and brushed Nanao's hair out of her face.

"Has she-?" Shunsui started to ask.

"Yes Shunsui, she still requires a lot of rest you know," Unohana pointed out, "I strongly suggest we put her back to bed."

Rangiku joined them and ran her fingers through Nanao's hair, "Follow me Shunsui, I'll show you to Nanao's room."

Shunsui readjusted his grip on Nanao and lifted her into his arms. He turned on his heel and followed Rangiku and Unohana out of the living room and back down the hallway to Nanao's room.

Once inside he stepped over to the bed and carefully placed her on it. He pulled the covers back and tucked her in. He then sat on the edge of the bed and rested his hand against her tear stained cheek and leaned in to plant a kiss on her forehead.

After quickly checking Nanao over, Unohana quietly stepped out of the room. Rangiku followed and paused at the door, "Shunsui if you need anything at all, just let me know okay."

Shunsui nodded and returned his attention back to Nanao, who was his sole concern at the moment.

Rangiku smiled and clicked to the door shut, feeling very very pleased that her two best friends were finally back together again.


	41. Chapter 41

Hello everyone, this chapter took a bit to get out, I'm finding myself increasingly busy lately. Thank you very much to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, and thank you to everyone who favourited/alert etc. I hope you all enjoy this chapter and hopefully chapter 42 will be out a bit quicker. Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 41<p>

~ One Week Later – Kotaro's Birthday ~

Toushiro stared at his opponent, sizing him up. Looking for any possible weaknesses and gaps in his guard. Looking for anything that could give him an advantage in this fight. He was pretty sure he could win.

His opponent stared right back, a small frown set upon his face. His eyes blazing with determination, while his bottom lip stuck out in a stubborn pout.

On the side lines Shunsui leaned closer to Ukitake, "Do you think Toushiro stands a chance?" he asked pulling his hat down to shield his eyes from the bright afternoon sun.

Ukitake brushed his hair away from his forehead, he glanced towards Toushiro and his opponent, "Its a tough call to make, both are equally determined to win."

Unohana came gliding over to them and raised a questioning eyebrow at the scene playing out before her, "What is going on here?"

"Nothing at the moment Captain Unohana," Nanao spoke up from the other side of Shunsui, who had his arm wrapped around Nanao's shoulders to keep the chill away, "They're at a bit of a standstill at the moment."

A small smile graced Unohana's lips, "Well then, this should be interesting," she replied settling by Ukitake's other side.

"Ready?" Rangiku called out from the opposite side of the small gathering of friends. This battle would commence only when she gave the go ahead.

Both heads turned to face Rangiku and nodded, before facing forwards once again.

Teal eyes met teal eyes.

Momo walked onto the battle area carrying two identical beakers. She stopped in front of Toushiro and placed one of the beakers down in front of him. She then walked over to Kotaro and placed the second beaker down in front of him. Before walking back to the side lines she ruffled Kotaro's hair affectionately.

"On your marks!" Rangiku shouted loud and clear once the battle area was clear.

Toushiro bent down and picked up the beaker resting before him on the ground. It instantly chilled his fingers, the condensation moistening his fingertips. Looking inside the beaker he saw the odd combination of watermelon juice blended together with crushed ice, creating an odd kind of slush.

Toushiro looked over to Kotaro and saw a mischievous glint in his eyes. Kotaro looked away briefly towards the gathered crowd. Toushiro followed his gaze and noticed an odd look exchanged between Kotaro and Momo. Looking along the line he saw that Ukitake and Shunsui had identical smirks, while Nanao and Unohana were visibly trying to keep the smiles off their faces.

What the hell was that about? He suddenly had a bad feeling about this.

"Get set!" Instructed Rangiku, throwing a cheeky wink at him and an encouraging thumbs up towards Kotaro.

Toushiro's grip tightened on the beaker, his fingers already numb. He could do this, there was no way he could be beaten. He was the master of ice damn it.

"Go!"

Toushiro lifted the beaker to his lips, the iced beverage instantly numbing them. He began to gulp the watermelon slushy down, as fast as possible.

The gathered crowd all began cheering their support, keeping up a steady chant of 'Kotaro Kotaro Kotaro!'

Typical.

Before this battle had started Rangiku had explained the rules to him. The aim was to drink the slushy as fast as possible. The winner would be determined on who finished it first and whether or not they were still standing afterwards. Toushiro wasn't sure what she meant by that. Why would either of them even fall? It was just a juice drinking contest. Right?

His teeth were painfully on edge. Tiny daggers were clawing their way down his throat, spreading throughout his chest and into his stomach. Yet he wouldn't yield. He refused to show weakness in front of the gathered crowd and especially his son. He refused to give up.

He carried on chugging down the slush while peaking over the rim at Kotaro, who surprisingly didn't show any signs that the icy drink was affecting him.

He was nearing the bottom of the beaker, only two more gulps to swallow down.

He lowered his beaker and let it slip through his numb fingertips to the ground. Kotaro had finished in exactly the same time, he too had discarded his beaker and was staring back at him. Waiting.

The gathered crowd held their breaths, waiting anxiously to see the outcome of this battle. Who would win.

They had both drained their beakers in the same time creating a draw, so now they had to wait and see who would yield first.

Father or Son.

Kotaro grinned an innocent little grin at him. It was a familiar grin. It was a Rangiku grin.

The moment he saw it, he knew he was screwed.

The aching numbness he felt in his mouth began to spread. He felt it along his jaw, gradually creeping up to his ears. He was aware his whole body was trembling.

The ache in his ears travelled up the side of his face. He visibly winced when the pain crept up into his temples. Kotaro just stood there smiling back innocently.

On the sidelines Shunsui mumbled just loud enough for them to hear, "Any second now."

The pain crept up his neck and up the back of his head. Then a deep aching throb exploded in his brain. He clenched his teeth against the pain as his eyes began to water. Resisting the urge to cradle his head. He could barely stand it.

Then Kotaro with his big wide teal eyes, full of concern took a step forward "Daddy are you feeling okay?"

All the concentration and focus he'd mustered up to keep himself from reacting to the painful throb in his head vanished. He could hear the odd snicker or two coming from the sidelines.

He threw his hands up kneading his fists against his temples and sunk to his knees, doubling over on the ground "Owwww... Brain freeze.."

Kotaro threw his arms up in victory, "Yay I won Daddy!" Shunsui and Ukitake burst out laughing loudly, while Momo and Nanao clapped and cheered Kotaro on, while Unohana just smiled in amusement.

Toushiro heard the pattering of feet as Kotaro came bounding over to him, launching himself onto Toushiro's back. Toushiro gripped his sides and hoisted him up onto his shoulders, then stood up and began walking over to where everyone was standing.

"Does Daddy's have a headache?" Kotaro asked threading his fingers into Toushiro's hair.

"Yes Kotaro, a very big headache. How about you?"

Kotaro giggled, wiggling his legs up and down "Daddy stop."

Toushiro paused in his walking and tilted his head up "What's up little man?"

Kotaro hunched down so he could whisper in Toushiro's ear "Want to hear a secret?"

Toushiro arched an eyebrow and nodded his head "Sure."

"Auntie Momo didn't put any ice in my juice" Kotaro grinned.

Toushiro shrugged his shoulders "I figured as much."

"How?"

"Well little man. You may have inherited my looks and my smarts, but your personality is pure mischief. Just like Mummy. I know that innocent grin anywhere, and it always spells trouble for me."

Kotaro smiled sweetly at him and began drumming his hands on Toushiro's head. Toushiro began walking back over to where everyone else was milling around and talking.

Rangiku was chatting animately with Momo, while Ukitake and Unohana were talking quietly between them. Shunsui had flopped down onto the grass and had pulled Nanao down onto his lap, his arms threaded around her waist and resting over her stomach.

"Daddy can you put me down," Kotaro asked wiggling his legs.

Toushiro crouched down and Kotaro slid off his shoulders and down his back. Kotaro was about to run off towards Rangiku but instead he turned back to Toushiro and wrapped his short arms around his neck, Toushiro rested his hands against Kotaro's sides "Are you okay Kotaro?"

Kotaro nodded and grinned.

"Happy Birthday son," Toushiro gave him a hug before releasing him, "Do you like your presents?"

Kotaro's face lit up, "I love them!"

"Glad to hear it," Toushiro glanced around him. He caught Rangiku's eye and she gave him a small hand signal. She needed Kotaro to be kept busy for a while. Which meant she was going to be putting the finishing touches to the birthday cake soon. They still hadn't showed Kotaro his new bike yet either, "Hey Kotaro, how about rounding everyone up for a game of football."

Kotaro nodded enthusiastically but before he could dash off towards Shunsui and Nanao, Toushiro added, "I'll go and fetch the ball okay?"

"Okay!" Kotaro then zipped off across the garden rounding everyone up.

Toushiro slipped around to the other side of the house to where they'd decided to set up the food table, and where they'd arranged some cushions on the grass for everyone to sit on. Rangiku was busy preparing everything. He slipped behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, "Kotaro's rounding everyone up for a game of football. Will that give you enough time?"

"Plenty," Rangiku picked up a sandwich and placed it on the tray. She then looked up and glanced over the hedge to the other part of the garden where everyone was gathered. Her eyes landed on Shunsui and Nanao and a small smile crept onto her face, "Its so nice seeing them back to normal again."

Toushiro followed her line of sight and watched as Shunsui helped Nanao back to her feet, "I have to agree, especially after all they've been through," he cocked his head to one side, "Its strange, its like Shunsui's changed and matured, whereas Nanao seems to have softened up a bit."

"I was thinking that too," Rangiku beamed back at him, "They're good changes."

"Did we change?" Toushiro voiced out aloud.

"You did Toshi," she poked him playfully in the ribs, "I'm still my same old fabulous self."

"I beg to differ," Toushiro raised a quizzical eyebrow, "I cant remember the last time I actually saw you drunk, you still have an aversion to paperwork but you will occasionally offer to help with it. Before I had to chase you down to get any work out of you. Then there's the whole partying every night thing, that you've not done in a long time."

"Pfft, so I have changed a bit," Rangiku flicked her hair over her shoulders, "Are you complaining?"

"Not at all, they've all been good changes."

"You've changed too you know," Rangiku reached for another sandwich and placed it carefully on the tray.

"Have I now?" He started kissing a trail up and down her neck.

"Yes, you're much more affectionate nowadays for starters. You're not so uptight, you don't scowl as much, you don't spend all night in the office. You don't lose your temper so easily. You have more fun."

"Hmm I guess I have changed a bit," Toushiro pulled away from her.

"Good changes," Rangiku placed the last sandwich on the tray and stepped away from the table, "I guess parenthood has a knack for bringing out the best in people."

"I guess so," Toushiro's eyes then landed on Kotaro's new football which was sat on the porch. He stepped over and picked it up, before heading over to the hedge and tossing it over to the other side of the garden. Kotaro ran over to it and picked it up before starting to organise the teams.

Toushiro smiled and stepped back over to Rangiku, who appeared to be looking at Ukitake and Unohana, "Do you think those two will ever get married or have children?" He voiced aloud.

"How do you know they haven't done both already?" Rangiku tilted her head to one side, "Shunsui told me that they've been on and off with each other for centuries, especially back in their early Shinigami days and after graduating the academy. Apparently they've been together more these last two hundred years. They act like an old married couple, don't you think?"

"I guess, but they seem the sort who would do things properly between them," Toushiro frowned.

"Maybe they're secretly married, but to avoid confusion by having two Captain Ukitake's maybe Captain Unohana decided to keep her name," Rangiku surmised.

Toushiro frowned, "You seem to have given this matter a lot of thought."

Rangiku giggled, "Its fun to hypothesize about other people. I even bet they've secretly had children too in their younger days."

"Now you're just being ridiculous Rangiku."

"Am I? Think about it Toshi," Rangiku lowered her voice conspiratorially, "We all know the Head-Captain is super strict and all that. You saw how he reacted about Shunsui. Can you imagine if he found out that Captain Ukitake and Captain Unohana were in a relationship? Especially in the early days of the Gotei 13 being formed," Rangiku had handed Toushiro a stack of napkins to fold while she started arranging some other snacks onto trays.

"I suppose," Toushiro sighed. He'd learnt it was best to just let Rangiku voice her crazy schemes and humour her, otherwise she would just keep going on and on.

"Now imagine if Captain Unohana found herself to be pregnant, that would be quite a sticky situation and I doubt the Head-Captain would tolerate children running around the place."

"What's your point Rangiku?" Toushiro could see where this was going, "Its not like you can hide being pregnant," he started folding the napkins and placing them in a tidy pile.

"Ah but you can," Rangiku grinned, "Captain Unohana is a tiny lady. Pregnancy doesn't show so much on slender woman until the later stages. But she could easily hide it with her Shinigami robes and haori."

"But even so the baby would have to be freakishly small," Toushiro frowned.

Rangiku had to bite her tongue to keep her face straight. It was always fun winding Toushiro up.

"And where exactly would they hide a kid away all these years? Besides they both love kids. I find it hard to believe they would hide away their own kid or abandon it somewhere, or have someone else look after it."

"Yes but if it was born years ago, it would be all grown up now," Rangiku smirked, "We just need to see who holds a resemblance to them both. Their kid is obviously walking amongst us because they are both powerful Shinigami, the kid would obviously have inherited that great power too."

Toushiro looked at her doubtfully before glancing over his shoulder to where he could hear Shunsui and Ukitake laughing, and Kotaro giggling loudly.

"There could be a whole herd of little Ukitake's and Unohana's running around," Rangiku pressed her point.

"Tch and how many people do you actually see walking around with Ukitake's hair?"

"Well I can think of one," Rangiku stared pointedly at Toushiro.

Toushiro scowled, "Rangiku, you're letting your imagination run away with you," he replied in a warning tone.

"Am I now?" Rangiku replied doubtfully, "I mean I know you grew up in Junrinan with Momo and your Granny, but do you know how you ended up there? Or do you remember anything prior to being there? For all we know they could have placed you in your Granny's care when you were newly born."

Toushiro scowled. He was about to make it clear that this odd discussion was over when...

"LOOK OUT DADDY!" Kotaro called before a second later the football bounced off Toushiro's head, "SORRY!"

Toushiro bent down and scooped the ball up before tossing it back over the hedge, "Be careful where you're kicking it Kotaro," he warned before returning to the task at hand. He heard Shunsui snorting with laughter.

Rangiku decided to back off and change direction, "Hey Toshi, have you ever noticed how much Nanao actually looks like Unohana? They have the same hair and eyes, but I swear she has Ukitake's nose and frown."

"Will you just drop it now?" Toushiro replied exasperated.

Rangiku giggled, "Fine, I'll stop winding you up now."

"Daddy are you playing football? We're all waiting for you," came Kotaro's voice from behind.

"Kotaro!" Toushiro startled slightly, "What have I told you about sneaking up on people like that?"

"Ooh yummy food!" Kotaro's eyes widened appreciatively on spotting all the food that was layed out on the table, before he quickly vanished from their sight.

Rangiku took the napkins from Toushiro, "You go Toushiro, I'm nearly finished here."

Rangiku allowed them all to play for another twenty minutes, in which time she'd placed Kotaro's birthday cake in the centre of the food table. She placed five blue candles in a circle and then in the centre was a large blue and white candle in the shape of a five.

She stepped back and admired her handiwork. Everything looked perfect. She then went around to the side of the house where Toushiro had hidden Kotaro's shiny new bike which he'd assembled last night after Kotaro had gone to bed.

She wheeled it around to where the food table was, and tossed a white sheet over it to hide it.

Pleased that everything was in order, she went and joined everyone else in the main garden. As soon as she stepped into the area the ball came hurtling towards her.

"Kick it Mummy!" Kotaro called from near by.

Rangiku kicked it over to Ukitake, who then passed to Toushiro who then blasted it into the make shift goal area.

"Uncle Shun-shun!" Kotaro complained, "You're suppose to save the ball!"

They all glanced over to Shunsui who had abandoned his goal saving duties and was instead fussing over Nanao.

"Shunsui I'm fine," Nanao complained.

"Are you sure? You look a little pale," Shunsui then lifted the back of his hand to her forehead, "You feel a bit warm too, maybe you should sit down for a bit."

"Honestly I'm fine," Nanao visibly took a deep breath and released it slowly. She then glanced at Shunsui and noticed the unconvinced look on his face, "I promise."

"I just don't want you pushing yourself that's all Nanao-chan, especially since we have our little Akachan to worry about in there," Shunsui placed his large hands over Nanao's stomach where he knew their baby was resting. So far they still hadn't found out whether they were having a boy or girl. Both he and Nanao had tried to discover what the baby's sex was, even Unohana had tried but so far it was a complete mystery. So Shunsui had taken to calling it their little Akachan, their little baby.

Rangiku glanced over to Ukitake who grinned back at her, they had both been finding it hilarious at just how much Shunsui had been freaking out at any slight change in Nanao. Hell even the other day when Ukitake had invited Shunsui, Nanao and herself around for tea, Nanao had sneezed and Shunsui practically went into panic mode. Before Ukitake had even had the chance to offer Nanao a tissue, Shunsui had already scooped her up and rushed her to the Fourth.

Luckily for Nanao though, Unohana had stepped over and assured Shunsui that Nanao was perfectly fine.

Kotaro came bounding over and Rangiku lifted him into her arms and planted a kiss on his cheek, "Happy Birthday sweetie, are you having a good day?"

Kotaro nodded, "When can we eat? You said once we have eaten we can have cake!"

"I know sweetie," Rangiku smiled, "The foods all ready now. I was just coming to let everyone know, plus.." she grinned, "Me and Daddy have one more surprise for you."

"Really?" Kotaro perked up.

"Yes but first," Rangiku took a breath then announced to everyone that the food was ready and that they could help themselves.

Kotaro wiggled free from Rangiku and bombed it to where everything was set up, yelling, "FOOD!" as he went.

Everyone chuckled and proceeded to follow Kotaro, albeit in a much quieter and orderly fashion.

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><p>It had been a good idea to place the cushions near the food table. Everyone was sitting around in a large circle which made for easy conversation. Momo was sat next to Kotaro and the pair were busy making doodles together.<p>

"Sit still Shiro-chan," Momo glanced at her wriggling subject with a warm smile, "I need to get a good drawing of the birthday boy. Smile now."

Kotaro grinned, showing off his trademark dimples.

"Very good, now if you could stay still for a moment."

Toushiro was sat next to Momo and Kotaro, he chuckled and glanced around the gathering of friends. Rangiku, Nanao and Unohana were discussing all things baby related, while Shunsui and Ukitake were having a serious game of 'Go.'

Rangiku must have sensed his gaze because she glanced over to him with an enquiring look. He drew a pick of a cake in the air with his fingers, then mimed blowing them out. Rangiku got his hint and a few seconds later she rose to her feet.

"Kotaro," she called, "I think its time we have some cake now."

Kotaro was on his feet in a second smiling, "Yay!"

Rangiku stepped over to the table and lit the candles, "Okay everyone lets sing Happy Birthday to Kotaro!" She singsonged happily.

Everyone stopped what they were doing and watched as Rangiku lifted the cake off of the table and brought it down to Kotaro's level. They all then started singing together.

"Happy Birthday to You,  
>Happy Birthday to You,<br>Happy Birthday Dear Kotaro,  
>Happy Birthday to You."<p>

Kotaro then took a deep breath and blew all the candles out in one go. They gave him a round of applause and Shunsui stepped forward and lifted Kotaro into the air, "Hip Hip."

"Hooray!" They all cheered.

"Hip Hip."

"Hooray!"

"Happy Birthday little buddy," Shunsui ruffled Kotaro's hair affectionately before placing him back down on his feet.

"What did you wish for Kotaro?" Ukitake asked beaming.

Kotaro grinned, "I cant say! Its a secret. If I tell it wont come true!"

"Silly me, how could I have forgotten that," Ukitake rummaged in his pocket and pulled out a sweet and handed it to Kotaro, "A sweet for a sweet Birthday boy."

"Thanks Grandad!" Kotaro took the sweet and promptly gobbled it up.

Unohana then stepped forward and Kotaro ploughed into her warm embrace, "Happy Birthday sunshine," she greeted and placed a soft kiss on his forehead.

After having his hug with Unohana, Kotaro then bounded over to Momo and Nanao, glomping both of them in turn. Then he finally returned to Rangiku and Toushiro.

"Can we eat the cake now?" Kotaro asked innocently.

"We can but," Rangiku started.

"We thought that you may want to see your surprise first," Toushiro finished for her.

"Oh oh a surprise!" Kotaro jumped up and down the spot.

"You have to close your eyes first sweetie," Rangiku reminded him.

Kotaro clamped his eyes shut but a second later he peeped an eye open.

"No cheating either!" Rangiku warned, "I think we need someone to make sure that you don't peep."

Momo who was the closest to Kotaro covered his eyes with her hand.

Kotaro giggled, "Auntie Momo I cant see."

"That's the point little man," Toushiro smirked, he then stepped over to the where the bike was standing and he whipped off the sheet. Kotaro's shiny new rocket red bike stood fully assembled and glinting in the sunshine, complete with stabilisers and his new helmet dangling from the handle bars.

"Oh that's rather nice," Shunsui commented from under his hat.

"Indeed," Ukitake grinned.

"I want to see too!" Kotaro fidgeted on the spot, Momo was doing a thorough good job of making sure he wasn't peeping.

"I know!" Rangiku squealed, "I absolutely love the colour."

"Mummy!" Kotaro whined.

"Okay okay, I'm only teasing you," she placated him, "Momo you can let him see now."

Momo removed her hand and Kotaro blinked a few times in the bright sun. His eyes landed on the bike and he slowly stepped over to it, his mouth gaping open in astonishment.

"Wow this is the quietest I've ever known him to be," Toushiro commented with a smirk.

Kotaro's wide eyes took in every inch of the bike and finally let out an impressed, "Wow."

"Do you like it sweetie?" Rangiku asked as she stepped over and knelt down beside him, she wrapped her arm around his waist.

Kotaro then started bouncing up and down on his feet in excitement clapping his hands together, "I love it!" He then launched himself at Rangiku and hugged the life out of her. Rangiku returned his hug with her own bone crushing one.

Toushiro stepped over to them with the tiny helmet in his hands, "Here try this on Kotaro."

Kotaro detached himself from Rangiku and allowed Toushiro to properly fit the helmet. Once it was on Toushiro helped him onto the bike, "Ready to give it a spin?"

Kotaro nodded enthusiastically with a huge grin on his face.

"Hold tight now and I'll help wheel you out to the pathways outside," Rangiku watched delighted as Toushiro, Kotaro and the new bike disappeared out of the main gates to their home and out of sight. She felt pleased that her idea had been the right one.

She sighed happily then turned back to everyone, "So.. Who would like some cake then?"


	42. Chapter 42

Hello Everyone, I'm pleased that you all enjoyed chapter 41. I think everyone had a sugar rush from all the fluff. Its not over yet, this chapters contains a certain amount of fluff too. Thank you for all the reviews. I loved all of your comments. Thank you. Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 42<p>

A laugh, a giggle, a squeal of delight.

These were the sounds that floated back to Rangiku, Unohana, Ukitake and Shunsui who were all sat relaxing on their floor cushions. Toushiro was still chasing Kotaro down, who had been racing through the Tenth Division on his new bike which he seemed to be thoroughly enjoying.

Shunsui lifted his sake dish to his mouth and took a small sip before allowing his gaze to fall upon Nanao, who was fast asleep by his side. She'd crashed out sometime ago and Shunsui had no intentions of disturbing her. If he was honest with himself it was actually a small relief to see her sleeping so soundly.

He shrugged out of his haori's and placed them both over her sleeping form, then he tuned back into the rather amusing conversation that Rangiku was having with Ukitake.

"But I swear she has your frown, Captain Ukitake," Rangiku pressed her point, "AND, I know she has your sweet tooth. I know you also noticed how many sweet buns she got through too."

"Rangiku my dear, you are barking up the wrong tree," Ukitake defended kindly.

"Am I though? The evidence is clearly there."

"Lots of people frown dear, and lots of people have a sweet tooth. I'm afraid those two things alone are not sufficient enough to prove your theory," Ukitake scratched the back of his head, feeling as though he was being interrogated by the Stealth Force. He glanced at Unohana hoping she would back him up but she simply sat there calmly and serenely.

"I thought you would say that," Rangiku replied with a grin, "So its a good thing that I have more evidence!"

Ukitake sighed wearily, "You're not going to let this drop are you?"

"Of course not! I must simply discover the truth about my best friends parentage."

Shunsui chuckled, "So lets hear this evidence then Rangiku," he injected as he raised his sake dish to her, encouraging her to continue.

Rangiku grinned a Cheshire cat grin, "Well..."

"Oh my," Ukitake gulped, what was he getting himself into this time, "You've certainly given this a lot of thought."

"Well aside from the fact that Nanao clearly has your frown and sweet tooth, oh and lets not forget those identical pointy chins of yours," Rangiku began.

Shunsui smirked and made himself comfortable, this was going to be interesting.

"Have you ever seen Nanao scowl? I know its very rare to see you scowl Captain Ukitake, but you two definitely have identical scowls," Rangiku arched an eyebrow.

"I do not scowl!" Ukitake protested.

Rangiku leaned in and narrowed her gaze at him, "Is that a scowl I see there?"

Shunsui laughed, "Its is! And what's more, it does kind of match Nanao's slightly."

"You can keep your comments to yourself Shunsui," Ukitake shot back at him, he sighed then added, "Again Rangiku, lots of people scowl."

This didn't deter Rangiku from continuing, "Then there's the love of books and literature that you both share, you are both very intellectual. I always find you both a little on the shy side. Yet saying that you do both have a bit of a temper about you at times, especially when you're feeling exasperated about something."

Ukitake slid his eyes closed and shook his head, trying to hide how exasperated he was feeling.

Rangiku had a thoughtful expression on her face, "You have a damn sexy laugh Captain Ukitake, although I cant compare it with Nanao's because I haven't actually heard her laugh that much."

"Nanao-chan does laugh," Shunsui supplied and nodded appreciatively, "Believe me, its the sexiest sound a man can hope to hear."

"No she doesn't, she just covers her mouth and suppresses it and manages to make herself look even more shy," Rangiku corrected.

"Which I find incredibly sexy," Shunsui corrected Rangiku's correction.

"Look Rangiku," Ukitake cleared his throat, "As coincidental as all this sounds-"

"I still have some more evidence," Rangiku grinned.

"Do share Ran-chan," Shunsui replied sharing her grin.

"Well, we've looked at Captain Ukitake's resemblances, but how about Nanao's mother's characteristics?"

"Excuse me?" Ukitake responded sounding more then a little flustered.

"Oh come now Juu, you know how the whole baby thing works. There's always a Mummy and a Daddy," Shunsui offered in a patronizing tone.

"I know that!" Ukitake exclaimed loudly and had to resist the urge to punch Shunsui.

"So who do you think her Mother could be then Ran-chan?" Shunsui asked genuinely intrigued.

"Well if we take Nanao's age and work back from it-"

"Enough!" Ukitake suddenly blurted out, "Can you two even hear yourselves?"

"No," Rangiku and Shunsui replied in unison, only paying Ukitake half of their attention.

"You know there is an easier way Ran-chan, just take a good look at Nanao-chan and see if she resembles anyone else."

Ukitake sighed and rose to his feet, he'd had more then enough of this conversation.

Unohana who'd remained quiet so far opened her eyes and gazed at Ukitake, "Juushiro where are you going?"

"For a walk, hopefully I'll bump into Toushiro and little Kotaro."

"The way things are going Captain Ukitake, I think its more likely that Kotaro will run into you," Rangiku smiled at him.

Once Ukitake had disappeared Shunsui spoke up from under his hat, "I think we upset him."

"I think I've just discovered a major flaw in my theory," Rangiku had a small frown on her face, "Captain Ukitake adores children. If he had any of his own then he certainly would know about it," Rangiku suddenly gasped, "Unless!"

"Unless what?" Shunsui yawned lazily from under his hat.

"Unless Captain Ukitake doesn't know that Nanao is his daughter because Nanao's mother never told him that he had a daughter. That would make more sense."

"Indeed," Shunsui sank down onto his side propping his head up with his forearm, he then draped his other arm over Nanao's side and rested his hand against her belly.

Rangiku glanced at Nanao who was still sleeping soundly and really studied her face and her features. She then glanced over to Unohana who was quietly sipping her tea. She looked at Nanao again, then finally settled her eyes back on Unohana, "Captain Unohana."

"Yes dear?" Unohana answered calmly, she was the very picture of peace and serenity.

"I couldn't help but notice that you and Nanao also share a few similarities too."

Shunsui chose to remain quiet, however he was watching the two of them intently.

"I think I can see why you'd think that Rangiku," Unohana replied without batting an eye.

"Its kind of hard not to notice really," At this stage Rangiku was thinking more aloud then actually talking through her theory with anyone, "There's the obvious similarities for starters. Nanao definitely has your hair and eyes. They're the same colour. She has the same skin tone as you, and your slender frame. Lets not forget her perfectly long eyelashes, which you have too. I know she can be shy like Captain Ukitake and also has a temper when provoked, but there is the other side of her. Her cool, calm and collected side that is so very much like your calm serenity. She has a strong aversion to drinking, very much like yourself. Nanao is completely devoted to her work and running the Eighth, very much like you are devoted to your patients. You both have a simple elegance about you. Then there is her crazy kido skills, which I don't mind admitting, that I'm completely jealous about. I know you are the chief medic of the Soul Society, but even I cant fail to notice that Nanao's incredible talent with kido had to have been inherited from you. You both have a meticulous way of how things should be done, and god help anyone who fails to to comply. Also how can I forget that Nanao called you Mother that day when we retrieved her from the World of the Living." Rangiku paused as she tossed everything around her head.

Silence had fallen between them which Shunsui happened to break first, "That's a pretty good assessment Ran-chan, however I feel that you are forgetting one tiny little detail."

"Oh and what would that be?" Rangiku asked quirking an eyebrow.

Shunsui pushed his hat out of his eyes and grinned, "You've completely over looked the fact that they both have a murderous glare that has sent many a man running. Retsu certainly does have a knack for dealing with the Eleventh Division and I've known Nanao-chan to have scared away a fair few new recruits in her time as my Lieutenant," Shunsui seemed to have a hint of pride in his eyes, "She's even made a few men cry too," he seemed thoughtful for a moment, "And don't get me started on the whole glasses thing and Retsu's creepy smile."

Rangiku pulled in a sharp breath, "How could I have forgotten that!" She suddenly blurted out.

They both glanced at Unohana and froze.

"I really do think that you two should drop the subject now," Unohana spoke in soft voice, yet her eyes contradicted her pleasant tone. She was smiling but they both suddenly felt the hairs on the back of their necks stand on end, "You're clearly letting your imaginations run wild now aren't you?"

"Yes ma'am," they both squeaked together.

In a blink of an eye, Unohana was back to her previous calm self, sipping tea and commenting on how lovely the day had been.

Shunsui and Rangiku shared a look and both released the breath they'd been holding.

"But then again, if Captain Unohana and Captain Ukitake were Nanao's parents, then surely they would've hunted you down and castrated you by now Shunsui for being with their little Nanao," Rangiku rapidly changed direction with her theory.

"You know what that is an excellent point Ran-chan, and seeing as my balls are perfectly intact.."

"I guess this particular case study has drawn inconclusive results," Rangiku let out a small breath and deflated slightly.

They all heard a soft sleepy sigh and glanced towards Nanao who was starting to stir from her nap. She rolled onto her back and stretched her arms out before slowly peeking her eyes open.

"Hello Sleeping Beauty," Shunsui smiled and lowered his lips to hers.

Nanao stopped him with her fingers over his lips. Shunsui opened his eyes and raised his eyebrows in question. She then rolled back onto her side and pushed herself up.

In doing so, both Rangiku and Unohana saw the colour drain out of her face.

Nanao threw her hand up over her mouth and scrabbled to her feet, hurrying towards the house.

"Nanao-chan?" Shunsui questioned and was soon on his feet.

Rangiku was up on her feet too, placing a restraining hand on Shunsui's arm, "Its okay Shun-kun. Nanao always gets sick after having her afternoon nap. I'll take care of her okay."

Shunsui nodded and Rangiku headed into the house after Nanao.

He sighed and sank back down to his feet, "You would think that after a week of being back together, that I would have noticed that by now."

"Pregnancy always takes some adjusting to," Unohana spoke up from her spot on the floor, "For both parties concerned."

Shunsui who was sat crossed legged on his cushion, rested his elbow on his knee and propped his chin up on his palm.

Unohana noticed his despondent expression and added, "For what its worth Shunsui, you're doing an excellent job of looking after Nanao."

Shunsui glanced at Unohana and that's when he noticed just how similar her eyes actually were to Nanao's. He knew Rangiku was just joking around with Ukitake, but what if there was some truth behind her theory, "Retsu."

"Yes Shunsui?" Unohana caught the thoughtful expression on his face.

"What Rangiku was just saying, about certain similarities between you, Juu and Nanao."

"I thought I made it quite clear that that particular discussion was over Shunsui," Unohana's gaze flickered down to her cup nestled in her palms.

"I didn't exactly hear you deny anything though," Shunsui pointed out.

"You didn't hear me confirm them either," Unohana replied patiently.

"Thinking about it, and thinking back to around the time when Nanao would've been born. I remember it being one of those times when you and Juu were quite close. I also remember things being particularly violent back then in the Seireitei. It certainly would've been no place for a child either. Constant battles and confrontations. A lot was asked of us Captains back then. I don't think the news of a child would've gone down particularly well."

"No Shunsui, it wouldn't have," Unohana lifted her cup to her lips and took a sip.

"Do you want to know what I thought happened?" Shunsui asked as he levelled his gaze on her.

When Unohana remained quiet he continued on.

"I think you and Juu were careless one night and forgot to take certain precautions. Then a few weeks down the line you found yourself with child. You would never have dreamed of getting rid of a child, so you kept it hidden until you gave birth. You are the chief medic of the Soul Society, you would've known exactly how to cope with the labour on your own. The Seireitei was no place for a child back then, so you would've had no choice but to send Nanao away. It would've been for her own safety. Yet from Juu's reaction to Rangiku's probing, its obvious that he doesn't have a clue about it. I reckon if he had known about it, then he certainly wouldn't have let you do that. I reckon you sent her out into the Rukongai somewhere and placed her with someone who you knew and trusted to look after her," Shunsui paused and practically slapped his forehead, "All those trips out into the Rukongai to gather herbs for your medicines, was that really the case or were you slipping off to go and visit her? Either way I think that plan backfired on you, because who would've known that Nanao would've been a fast developer and that her powers would've emerged at such a young age. It obviously would've been dangerous for Nanao to stay with whoever you'd trusted to take care of her, especially out in the Rukongai with Hollows. So you must have pulled some strings and gotten her into the Academy way too early. Yet with Nanao's smarts she would've had no problem with it. Then she graduated all too quickly and then you found yourself with a bit of a dilemma. Once Nanao was ready to join the Gotei 13, then surely questions would've been raised if a mere child was seen to be working in the Fourth Division who bore a striking resemblance to you, where no doubt, is where you would've wanted her to be. So you could keep an eye on her. So the Fourth would've been out of the question. She could've gone to Juu's division, but again, some rather astute people may have noticed certain similarities in their personalities. If these similarities were mentioned to Juu at any point then he would've come to ask you. So I reckon you placed her in the only place that you could get away with. With the only other person you could trust to make sure that no harm came to her, and that would avoid any and all suspicion. You placed her in the Eighth, with me. Your best friend. I thought at the time that it was strange a small child with an obvious talent for kido being placed with me in the Eighth, when she could've flourished so much better in the Fifth, who specialize in kido combat," Shunsui took a small breath and smiled, "Obviously this all just speculation and I'm just simply expanding on Rangiku's theory about the matter."

Shunsui noticed that Unohana had closed her eyes and was holding herself rather still. Again she was neither denying or confirming these allegations he was throwing at her. He was about to ask her straight out whether Nanao was in fact hers and Juu's child, when he heard movement from behind him.

He glanced over his shoulder to see Toushiro, Ukitake and Kotaro returning. Ukitake was carrying Kotaro in his arms with such fondness and Toushiro was steering Kotaro's bike back through the gate. Ukitake paused and Kotaro wiggled out of his arms, then started to run over to where he and Unohana were sitting.

Unohana placed her cup down and Kotaro ran straight into her out stretched arms, "Gran-Gran I fell off my bike."

"Oh dear, did you hurt yourself?"

"I hurt my elbow," Kotaro lifted his elbow to show her.

Unohana held it gently between her hands and had a look at the large graze. However, she didn't need to do much, because right before her eyes the cut had already started to heal itself. Its seemed Kotaro's regenerative abilities had decided to kick in already. Within seconds the graze had knitted itself back together, so all that was left was a smearing of blood that needed to be washed off.

"Its it okay Gran-Gran?"

"It will be sunshine," Unohana planted a soft kiss on his forehead and smiled, "Lets get you cleaned up shall we?"

Kotaro nodded and Unohana rose to her feet and held his hand, together they headed back inside.

Ukitake sat himself down on a floor cushion next to Shunsui, "Where's the ladies gone Shunsui?"

"Nanao's sick, Rangiku's taking care of her, and Retsu's cleaning little Kotaro up," Shunsui watched Unohana's retreating back and frowned.

"Is something up?" Ukitake noticed his frown.

Shunsui shook his head, "Its nothing Juu buddy."

Toushiro joined them a few minutes later, gulping down a glass of watermelon juice, "Where's everyone gone?" He asked as he flopped down onto a cushion feeling exhausted.

"They'll be back soon," Shunsui adjusted his hat and flopped backwards onto his back.

"Shunsui," Ukitake began and hesitated.

"What is it?" He mumbled from under his hat.

"Do you think what Rangiku said could be true?"

Shunsui for once was at a loss for words, however he was spared from having to answer by Toushiro's timely interruption, "Tell me she didn't!"

"She didn't what, Toushiro?" Ukitake turned his focus to Toushiro.

"She has this crazy idea in her head that you and Unohana could be Nanao's parents. I told her to keep her theories to herself. I wouldn't pay any attention to them, she even thought that I could be your son. I mean come on. Its just Rangiku being classic Rangiku," Toushiro shook his head in exasperation, "She enjoys winding people up and stirring up trouble."

"Well she could be your daughter Juu you never know," Shunsui tilted his hat back to look at his friend, "I wouldn't completely dismiss it, just in case."

Ukitake gave him a scathing look.

"Juu."

"What now Shunsui?" Ukitake slid his eyes closed and sighed.

"Can I ask for your permission to marry Nanao-chan?"

"Why do you even need MY permission?" Ukitake blurted out, "You've already said you were going to go ahead and marry her."

"I'm just doing the proper thing by asking the father of the bride first," Shunsui smirked.

"Shunsui..." Ukitake practically growled in annoyance.

"Fine, fine. I'll shut up now," Shunsui placated him, "But if it does turn out that you are Nanao's father, then you seriously don't have any grounds for complaint."

"Can we just drop this now?" Ukitake rubbed at his temples.

"Hey you're the one whose getting all worked up Papa bear," Shunsui hid his smirk under his hat. It felt good having the opportunity to tease Ukitake again.

They heard a bang as Kotaro came bursting out of the back door. He spotted them and came charging over to them. Shunsui sat up, "Jeez doesn't the kid ever run out of energy?"

"Nope," Toushiro answered, "He just keeps going on and on."

Kotaro picked up his football and stopped in front of them, "Look what I can do Daddy!" He then started to do a series of tricks with his new football. Kicking it continuously on one foot, bouncing it off his knee, heading it. He certainly had some skills.

"Did you learn that just by watching me?" Toushiro asked tilting his head to one side.

Kotaro grinned and nodded.

"Can I have a go little buddy?" Shunsui asked getting to his feet. He reached his arms out to stretch, popping a few bones as he did so.

Kotaro held the ball out to him with a grin.

* * *

><p>"You just need some fresh air Nanao," Rangiku said as she tossed her arm around Nanao's shoulder and started herding her back outside.<p>

As they stepped down the hallway Unohana emerged from the kitchen with a tall glass of water and offered it to Nanao, "Here we go dear."

Nanao took the glass and sipped gratefully, "Thank you."

"How are you feeling?" Unohana brushed a strand of Nanao's hair away from her face in a motherly gesture.

"A bit rough," Nanao replied as she rubbed at her temples.

"Well Rangiku's quite right, a bit of fresh air will help you feel better."

The three of them stepped out into the garden to see the guys kicking Kotaro's football around again. They headed over to them and Kotaro came zipping across the lawn and launched himself at Rangiku.

"Hey sweetie, aren't you tired yet?" She asked as she pulled him up into her arms.

Kotaro shook his head and grinned, "I'm full of energy today Mummy."

"Hmm well lets just see once all that sugar in your system wears off okay?" Rangiku glanced around and frowned at the darkening sky. It'd been an enjoyable day but it sure had flown by.

When the guys saw them they stopped playing with the football and strolled back over to them. Ukitake walked up to Unohana and wrapped his arm around her waist and planted a soft kiss on her cheek. Toushiro ruffled Kotaro's hair and took him from Rangiku, she then stepped behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her chin on his shoulder, "Today's been perfect," she purred in his ear.

Shunsui had turned his back on everyone and seemed to be rummaging inside his robes. A few seconds later he turned to face them. His face lit up when he spotted Nanao, "Are you feeling a bit better now Nanao-chan?" He asked with concern in his voice.

"I'll be fine," she waved his concern away, "I'm starting to get used to the whole sickness thing now." A gust of wind kicked up which sent Nanao's teeth chattering.

"You're cold," Shunsui pointed out and picked his haori up off the floor. He stepped over to Nanao and tossed it around her shoulders and pulled it closed at the front, before pulling her into his chest and wrapping his arms around her for warmth, "I cant have you and our little Akachan freezing to death can I?"

Nanao snuggled up to him as close as she could get, enjoying his warmth. Shunsui shared a look with Ukitake, who gave him a discreet nod. He then glanced at Unohana, the corner of her mouth lifting up slightly. His gaze then travelled to Rangiku who smirked back at him, then to Toushiro who seemed to be growing impatient. Then finally he glanced at Kotaro who was slowly nodding off in Toushiro's arms.

"Nanao-chan," he mumbled against her hair, "There's something I need to discuss with you."

Nanao sighed softly against his chest, "What is it Shunsui?" Now that she'd found warmth, she was reluctant to move.

"Well its quite serious you see, and I was hoping for your input on the matter," Shunsui dropped his arms from Nanao as she took a step back from him.

Nanao looked up at him with a serious expression on her face, "Is it the paperwork?"

"What! No! Of course not," Shunsui answered her far too quickly.

Nanao's eyes narrowed, "Yes it is, you're lying. What did you do wrong?"

"Nothing Nanao-chan, the paperwork is completely fine," Shunsui tried to reassure her.

Nanao cocked her head to one side and folded her arms across her chest, "No you've messed something up and now you're trying to cover it up."

"Its nothing like that," Shunsui defended.

"Its the budget form isn't it? Shunsui what did you do?"

"Err I'm not really sure Nanao-chan," Shunsui took a step back and turned on his heel, "Just forget that I said anything all right, besides you're not suppose to be working seeing as you're still on sick leave," he took a couple steps forward away from Nanao, "I'm sure I'll get it sorted."

"SHUNSUI!" Nanao rushed forward and stretched out her left hand to grab him, "If you've made a mistake-"

Shunsui suddenly spun around and grabbed her outstretched hand. Before Nanao could react he quickly slipped a small delicate ring onto her finger. He released her hand and Nanao slowly lifted it up to her eye level. Her eyes went wide on seeing the thin, gold band that had been decorated with delicate engravings of tiny flowers and leaves. The fading sunlight shined off the surface of the ring which highlighted two carefully engraved words which read, _'Eternally Yours.' _Nanao flipped her hand over to look at the other side of the ring and saw another engraving which read _'Shunsui'. _

Nanao finally glanced up at Shunsui who lifted up his left hand and waved it at her. Sure enough on his finger was a matching band of gold, which she had no doubt in her mind matched hers perfectly. She reached for his hand and looked at his ring. Like hers it had the same engravings of flowers and leaves, and the words '_Eternally Yours.'_ She flipped his hand over and the name on his ring was _'Nanao'._

In that precise moment Nanao didn't know how to react, which Shunsui kind of expected. It always took Nanao awhile to deal with her emotions. He took her hand with the ring on and lifted it to his lips. He kissed her knuckles, "Nanao-chan," he spoke in a soft low voice which was full of warmth, "Would you do me the honour of becoming Mrs Kyouraku?"

He watched as a whole range of emotions crossed over her face. It was also quite a sight, seeing Nanao smiling yet at the same time have a torrent of tears pouring down her face. She was so overcome by emotion she seemed unable to form words. So Shunsui pulled her closer for a hug and she once again buried her face in his chest.

Shunsui kissed the top of her head, "So would that be a yes then Nanao-chan?"

Nanao nodded her head and Shunsui could have sworn he heard a small sob. He hugged her tighter, completely oblivious to their friends reactions. Or the fact that Rangiku had joined in on their hug, and that Unohana and Ukitake were sharing a long kiss. Even Toushiro had a small smile on his face.

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><p>Happy Birthday Shunsui ^_^ 1107/2012


	43. Chapter 43

Hello everyone, apologies for the wait on this chapter. Its been a busy few weeks. Thank you to my reviewers for all your comments. I'm glad you all enjoyed the last chapter. Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 43<p>

"Kotaro come on we need to leave!" Rangiku called from the entrance hall.

"I'll be right there Mummy!" his voice called back from his bedroom.

Toushiro walked through the front door, "The suitcases are on their way, they'll be waiting for us when we get there," he closed the front door behind him, "Are we ready to go?"

"No, we're still waiting on Kotaro," Rangiku sighed before yelling, "Kotaro hurry up sweetie, we're really pushed for time!"

They heard the patter of feet as Kotaro hurried down the hallway, "Mummy!" He called as he stopped before them.

"Oh good you're ready," Rangiku clapped her hands together.

"Not exactly," Toushiro commented as he caught sight of Kotaro.

Kotaro had the jeans on that Rangiku had picked out for him, but the button and zip were still open. He was wearing a plain white T-shirt with a green checked shirt over the top, which he'd left unbuttoned. He only had one sock on, the other was stuffed in his jeans pocket. He was juggling Yori in his arms, along with his trainers whose laces were all tangled and knotted up.

Kotaro glanced up at them with a scowl, "I don't know how to do them," he growled in exasperation and slammed the trainers down onto the floor. He folded his arms across his chest, a stubborn pout forming on his face.

"Don't throw your trainers down like that," Toushiro admonished and stepped forward to pluck them off the floor. He glanced at the knotted up laces and started working them free.

Meanwhile Rangiku started fussing over Kotaro, neatening his hair, putting on his other sock, fastening up his jeans, smoothing out his T-shirt and finally buttoning up a few of his shirt buttons, "There we go, that's much better sweetie," she then kissed his forehead, "You look adorable."

"Okay watch very closely little man," Toushiro slipped one of the pumps onto Kotaro's foot, "This is how you tie shoe laces."

Kotaro watched fascinated as Toushiro proceeded to show him how to tie the laces.

"Now then," Toushiro placed the other pump on Kotaro's foot, "Give it a try."

Kotaro followed the steps that Toushiro had shown him, however he was still having a little difficulty. Remembering that they were pushed on time, Toushiro reached for the laces and finished them off, "You'll get it with practise. Now come on," he grabbed Kotaro and started threading his arms into a soft, navy, zip through hooded jacket, "We're running late."

"Can I take my bike with me?" Kotaro asked grumpily.

"Sorry sweetie, we cant take it with us. Not where we're going at least," Rangiku reached for his hand and together she and Toushiro started carting Kotaro down the pathway.

"Where are we going Mummy?" Kotaro asked unenthusiastically.

"We're going on a family holiday sweetie," Rangiku replied cheerily, "Me and Daddy both need the break and we wanted to introduce you to the Living World."

"Why do I have to wear these?" He glanced down at the unusual clothes he was wearing.

"Its so we blend in when we arrive at the Living World," Rangiku replied.

"They look stupid," Kotaro tugged at his collar uncomfortably.

"You look lovely sweetie," Rangiku cooed, "Everybody wears those cute little pumps and denim jeans in the Living World. I picked the white T-shirt to match your hair and I think the green shirt really brings out your gorgeous eyes. Then that navy jacket just ties the whole thing together," she gave him a beaming smile.

Kotaro's frown was adorable.

"If it makes you feel any better little man," Toushiro directed a whisper towards his son, "Mummy got me too," he knew Rangiku had sneaked off to where their gigai's were being stored last night. Just so she could dress their gigai's up before they were sent ahead of them with their luggage, "I dread to think what she's done.

Rangiku elbowed him playfully in the ribs, "I heard that."

"Is Gran-Gran, Grandad, Uncle Shun-shun, Auntie Nan-nan and Momo coming too?" Kotaro asked hopefully.

"No little man, they'll be staying here. Its just you, your mum and me," Toushiro supplied.

"How long will we be going for?" Kotaro asked frowning.

"Just for a couple of weeks sweetie," Rangiku smiled at him encouragingly, "Two fun filled weeks," she added.

"Two weeks!" Kotaro complained, "That's ages."

Rangiku paused and glanced down at Kotaro with concern, "Sweetie aren't you excited about this?"

Kotaro just shrugged.

"You'll feel differently when we arrive there," Toushiro said as he plucked Kotaro off the floor and planted him on his shoulders.

"Why cant Grandad or Auntie Nan-nan come too?"

"Oh sweetie, you know Grandad is busy," Rangiku sighed, "Auntie Nanao is in no fit state to travel and Uncle Shunsui needs to look after her."

"What about Gran-Gran and Auntie Momo then?"

"They're both really busy sweetie, I'm sorry."

Kotaro deflated slightly and allowed his chin to drop and rest against Toushiro's head, he then blew a puff of air out of his mouth moodily.

Rangiku noticed this and changed tactics, "Kotaro you're going to help me right?"

Kotaro lifted his head, "Help with what?"

"Well seeing as nobody else can come with us, we'll need to bring them all back a little something as a souvenir. Will you help me pick something out for everyone?"

"Mummy what's a souvenir?"

"Its like a memento, a small gift or a present, just something little to let the people who you left behind know, that you were thinking of them whilst you were away."

"What type of present?" Kotaro asked curious.

"Oh it can be anything," Rangiku placed her finger to her lips, "I think the more common ones are candies, snow globes, key rings.. anything really."

Kotaro suddenly started to wriggle his legs, "Oh! Can I pick some candy out for Grandad?"

"Of course you can sweetie. So I take it that you want to help me?"

Kotaro nodded enthusiastically and spent the rest of the way to the senkaimon in deep discussion with Rangiku, about what they would buy for everyone.

On arriving at the senkaimon, Toushiro lifted Kotaro down to the floor and as soon as his feet touch the ground, he went bombing over to the two figures that were standing a little way away.

"Gran-Gran! Grandad! What are you doing here?"

As Rangiku and Toushiro approached Ukitake and Unohana, Kotaro was giving both of them a monster hug.

Ukitake scooped Kotaro up and gave him a solid hug, "I assume you're going to miss us just as much as we're going to miss you, young man."

Unohana smiled at them and lifted her hand to stroke Kotaro's hair, "You're looking very handsome today."

Kotaro scowled, "Mummy made me wear them."

"You'll get use to them sweetie," Rangiku commented having finally caught up to them. She then clapped her hands and a Cheshire cat grin formed on her face, "Just wait till you see what Daddy will be wearing."

Toushiro stared back at Rangiku dubiously, "If its something stupid again.."

Rangiku silenced him with a finger over his lips, "Its not, I promise."

Toushiro still wasn't convinced.

"Look, I've simply chosen something that will compliment the few changes you made to your gigai, tie you in with what I'll be wearing, while at the same time make it look obvious that you're the man of the house," she smiled at him warmly, "There's nothing stupid about that at all."

Toushiro sighed, "I guess I'll just have to trust you."

"Daddy look! Grandad gave me some sweets," Kotaro called as he clutched a bulging bag of jelly beans, he'd already managed to shove a good handful in his mouth.

"Don't eat them all at once little man," Toushiro warned, "We'll be having breakfast once we arrive there."

"Grandad these sweets taste funny," Kotaro scrunched his nose up but continued to chew regardless.

"Funny how?" Ukitake stepped forward and popped a jelly bean into his mouth. After a few chews a light scowl formed on his face, "I see what you mean, but they tasted fine last night."

"They're sugar free," Unohana commented serenely from Ukitake's side.

"Sugar free?" Ukitake questioned horrified, "How do you know?"

"Because I switched them whilst you were sleeping last night," Unohana replied calmly.

"Why would you do-" Ukitake started to argue but Unohana cut him off.

"Juushiro we've already had this conversation, several times in fact. I will not allow you to give little Kotaro diabetes. Plus, he has a lovely set of teeth. I want to keep that lovely smile of his looking nice."

Kotaro glanced between his grandparents and grinned.

"Very well Retsu," Ukitake bent down and pulled Kotaro into his arms again. While he was hugging Kotaro he slipped another bag of sweets into Kotaro's pocket. When they pulled away he winked at Kotaro.

Kotaro grinned back before stepping over to Unohana and throwing his arms around her legs. Unohana rested her hand on his head and smiled fondly at him, "I'll let you off on that bag Grandad just slipped into your pocket. It is a small one after all."

Kotaro's eyes went wide and he glanced back at Ukitake who smiled sheepishly.

The massive wooden gates of the senkaimon started to swing open, emitting a bright pale blue light. There was a chiming noise and Kotaro saw three black butterflies hovering just before the gate.

"Kotaro, we need to go now sweetie," Rangiku called softly.

Kotaro's grip tightened on Unohana's robes, he glanced up at Unohana feeling apprehensive.

Unohana noticed his sudden agitation and crouched down so she was on the same level as him, "Don't be fearful my little dragon, you will be perfectly safe going through with your Mum and Dad."

"But what if it swallows me up?" Kotaro's eyes were wide, "Or if the cleaner comes along and snatches my pants?"

Ukitake chuckled and ruffled his hair, "Has Uncle Shunsui been telling you horror stories again?"

"But he said that he had to run for his life because the cleaner was chasing him, and it nearly caught him and sucked his pants right off!"

Ukitake sighed, "Do you want to know the full and real story?"

Kotaro nodded.

"Okay here goes. Uncle Shunsui had slipped off to the the Living World without the proper authorization. It was shortly after the conclusion of a blazing war we'd all found ourselves tossed into. It was when Shunsui, Retsu and myself were newly appointed Captains. It had been a hard war and the Seireitei was running dangerously low on food supplies. We'd completely ran out of sake too. Something which Shunsui was having trouble coping with. So he'd slipped off the the Living World on a bar crawl. He gotten ridiculously drunk and when it came to returning home, well.. his drunken mind was at odds with his sense of direction. I can only determine that he'd made it halfway through the precipice world and then had a stumble. Because why else would he head back the way he came? He only realised his mistake when the cleaner appeared and was heading straight for him. So he turned tale and ran back the other way," a large grin spread across Ukitake's face. "Obviously he'd been gone for hours and both me and Retsu were worried about him. The two of us went to the room where they monitored traffic going through the precipice world and saw from the records, that he'd left earlier in the day. We also saw that he'd entered it again but had failed to exit. So me and Retsu decided to go after him and pull his silly hide out of there."

Kotaro's eyes were wide, "What happened next Grandad?"

"Not much Sunshine," Unohana replied in her usual calm tone, "Juu and myself had arrived at the senkaimon intending to go in. But the gates swung open and Shunsui came flying out."

"Is that it?" Kotaro asked sounding disappointed.

"Pretty much," Ukitake grinned, "However, it must have been one hell of a close call. He was butt naked and screaming like a little girl. Whether the cleaner had indeed gotten a little too close and had sucked off his clothes, or whether it was just a result of his drunken night out," he shrugged, "We'll never know."

Kotaro felt a pair of hands rest on his shoulders, he glanced up to see Toushiro looking down at him.

"Kotaro, there are many rules in place for passing through the precipice world however, there is only one you need to concern yourself with today," Toushiro paused to make sure he was listening, "When we go through you have to walk in between me and Mummy at all times and hold our hands. Okay?"

Kotaro nodded.

"We have travelled through the precipice world many many times. You'll be perfectly safe as long as you stay next to us."

Kotaro lifted his hand and gripped Toushiro's hand tightly.

"We need to go now Kotaro."

Kotaro nodded and quickly glanced back at Ukitake and Unohana, "Goodbye Gran-Gran and Grandad."

"Have a pleasant trip Sunshine."

"We'll see you when you get back," Ukitake smiled and reached for Unohana's hand.

Kotaro waved before reaching for Rangiku's hand.

"Ready to go now sweetie?" Rangiku held his hand firmly in her own.

Kotaro grinned and nodded enthusiastically.

"Ready Toushiro?"

"I'm ready."

* * *

><p>As the Hitsugaya's stepped forward into the senkaimon, the bright blue light intensified and Ukitake had to hold up a hand to shield his eyes for a moment. Once the light had faded and he'd blinked his vision clear, Ukitake saw that the gate had closed again.<p>

He stood there for a moment hand in hand with Unohana, until he cleared his throat, "Shall we walk back then?"

Unohana nodded and started guiding him away from the gate.

Usually the two of them would slip into easy conversation, however they remained silent for a good twenty minutes or so before Ukitake stopped and sighed.

Unohana paused too and glanced at him, "Juushiro?"

"Retsu, why do things feel awkward between us again," He glanced at her and sighed when she broke eye contact with him, "Ever since Kotaro's birthday last week, it feels as though you've been keeping me at arms length. We seem fine whenever we're around someone else, but when its just the two of us."

Unohana stepped forward and ran her hand up and down his upper arm, "I'm sorry."

"Is this because of Rangiku's comments?" He questioned gently, "I know we've both wanted a child of our own for years and its just not happened, but maybe there's still time for us?"

Unohana shook her head gently, "Its not that Juushiro."

"Then what is it?" he asked tilting his head to one side.

Unohana grasped his hand and started walking again, "Lets go back to the Fourth and have a cup of tea. We need to talk."

* * *

><p>Due to its high position, whenever the main senkaimon was used for travelling to the World of the Living, the inhabitants of the Seireitei could never fail to miss when someone had walked through it. Its bright flash could always be seen for many miles and across several of the Divisions. The Eighth included.<p>

Shunsui was lounging on his porch, one arm being used to prop up his head while in his other hand he held a cup of tea. He tipped his hat out of his eyes and took a sip of his tea. He would've preferred sake, but the smell of it made Nanao sick. Especially in the mornings. In fact he could hear her right now in the bathroom.

They had both wanted to see Rangiku, Toushiro and Kotaro off on their trip, but Nanao had been hit particular hard with morning sickness. So for the best, they'd decided to stay close to home.

He heard the tap running and knew that Nanao would be joining him soon, so he sat himself up and poured her a fresh cup of tea. He rested his back against the house and stretched one of his legs out, while he brought his other knee up so he could prop his arm on it.

A few seconds later Nanao stepped out onto the porch looking quite pale.

Shunsui stretched his arm out and offered her his hand, which she took. He then guided her over to sit down on his lap. He waited for her to settle down before picking up her cup, "Do you think you could stomach some tea."

Nanao took the cup and had a careful sip, "I think I'll be okay now."

Shunsui ran a soothing hand up and down her back. Nanao sighed appreciatively and her gaze travelled up to the hill where the senkaimon was sat.

"I'm afraid you just missed them," he brushed her hair out of her face and kissed her cheek, "They left a few minutes ago."

"I would've liked to have gone to see them off personally," Nanao rubbed at her eyes sleepily.

"I'm sure they'll understand," he rested his large hand against her cheek and tilted her face so he could see her, "You look exhausted Nanao-chan."

"I guess I do feel quite tired today," she admitted.

"Did you sleep well last night?" He asked, but already knew that she'd been restless during the night.

"Not particularly."

"Why not?"

Nanao relaxed against him and nestled her face in the crook of his neck, "It was just a dream."

"A scary one?" His lips mumbled against her head.

"No, but it was pretty strange."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Nanao lifted her head and gazed at him, "It was just a dream, I'm not going to worry about it," she yawned.

Quick as lightening Shunsui was on his feet and carrying her back into the house.

"What are you doing!" She asked shocked.

"My Nanao-chan's tired, so I'm putting her back to bed."

"I can go myself!" She scolded lightly.

"Yes, but would you?"

"Normally no, but on this particular occasion I was considering it for once."

Shunsui paused in his march to the bedroom and glanced down at her, "Nanao-chan you would actually go back to bed of your own free will, instead of fighting with me about it and then finding several different excuses on why you shouldn't?" He was amazed that she wasn't putting up much of a fight about it.

Nanao was quiet for a few minutes before replying, "Shunsui, I feel tired and drained and I'm in no mood for this discussion."

Shunsui gently placed her back down on her feet and watched as she padded back to their room. That was both unusual and concerning, "Nanao-chan."

She paused before stepping into the bedroom and glanced at him over her shoulder, "Hmm?"

"Are you feeling okay?"

Nanao's hand dropped down to her belly, worry was etched across her face. Shunsui closed the distance between them and pulled her into his arms. He then guided her back into the bedroom and flopped down onto the bed with her. Nanao cuddled up next to him and buried her face in his chest.

"Nanao-chan," he held her close to him, "What's wrong sweetheart?"

"Something doesn't feel right today."

"What do you mean?"

"My stomachs aching a lot and the baby's energy feels quite turbulent."

Shunsui rolled Nanao onto her back and hovered above her, "I thought you couldn't feel it so well?"

"Normally I cant. Like I said before, it usually feels cloudy and unreadable. But today.. It feels different."

"Can I?" Shunsui asked glancing at her belly. Nanao gave him a nod and he rested his large hand over her stomach and closed his eyes. Just like Nanao, he'd been struggling to feel its energy too. Even Captain Unohana with her medical expertise and machines, had been struggling to produce results. Shunsui took his time and soon felt what Nanao had been feeling. Turbulence.

Nanao saw the serious look on his face, "What do you think?"

"Do you want me to take you to the Fourth?"

He was expecting her to tell him that he was being ridiculous and over protective and that he shouldn't panic, like all the other times before.

Nanao gave him a small nod, "Please."

Shunsui pushed away from the bed and grabbed the nearest dressing gown, he tossed it around Nanao's shoulders and scooped her up into his arms.

* * *

><p>At the fourth Shunsui was pacing up and down the corridor restlessly, while Nanao was being checked over by Unohana in one of the rooms. Usually in this situation, Ukitake would be telling him to sit down and quit pacing. But this time Ukitake was sat on a seat seemingly in his own little world. Shunsui could tell from his frown that his friend had a huge weight on his shoulders.<p>

For once he wasn't going to ask. He was too worried about Nanao and their baby. He stepped over to where Ukitake was and sat himself down with a sigh.

Ukitake glanced at him with a rather pale face.

Shunsui raised an eyebrow, "Juu, are you feeling okay buddy? You look like shit."

"You were right," Ukitake replied in a faint voice.

"About what?"

"About what you said at Kotaro's birthday."

Shunsui didn't have time to ask, because the door to Nanao's room opened and Unohana emerged. He was on his feet instantly, "Retsu?"

Unohana reached for his hand, "Come on in Shunsui."

He allowed himself to be led into the room and he stepped over to the side of Nanao's bed and took her hand, "Is everything okay?"

Nanao gave him a small nod and smiled.

"Well that's a relief," Shunsui blew out a breath, "So what's the problem?"

"The energy swirling around Nanao's stomach has grown in intensity. But it settled down about five minutes ago. The cloudiness that she's had for the last few weeks has lifted at last," Unohana replied calmly, "For the first time since learning about Nanao's pregnancy, we can actually get more accurate readings when examining her. We can even get results on the machine too."

"Oh I see," Shunsui took a few minutes to process that information, "So we can learn more about our baby then?"

Unohana nodded, "I can now tell you that Nanao is approximately two months into her pregnancy. She will be due to give birth in April."

"How wonderful Nanao-chan," Shunsui smiled genuinely pleased, "We'll be having a spring baby."

Nanao smiled, "There's still more you need to know."

"Oh of course, are we having a boy or girl?" He asked excitedly.

"I still don't know yet," Nanao replied and gripped his hand tighter, "Shunsui, this isn't going to be a straight forward pregnancy. Captain Unohana's discovered something and you need to know about it."

Shunsui sobered up instantly. He glanced between the two looking very serious, "Nanao-chan?"

"Would you like to see what we found on the screen Shunsui?" Unohana asked calmly.

He nodded and watched as Unohana flicked a switch and the screen came to life. He heard the rhythmic sound of a heart beating, but it sounded strange. Very strange. Almost like it was beating far too fast for just the one heartbeat. His eyes narrowed until comprehension dawned on him. He eyes went wide and he nearly toppled off the edge of the bed, "Wait are we having.."

"Twins," Nanao finished for him, "We're having twins Shunsui."

"Twins?" He repeated.

"That's right Shunsui," Unohana confirmed.

"Two of them?" He asked dumbly.

Nanao nodded with an amused smile on her face, "That's generally what having twins means Shunsui."

Shunsui recovered from his shock and bent down to plant a kiss on Nanao's lips, "Little boys or little girls?"

Nanao flattened her hand against her stomach, "I was hoping we could find that out together."

Shunsui smiled and hugged her tightly, "I'd be delighted to."

"I'll give you two a moment alone," Unohana excused herself and slipped out of the room to find Ukitake.

Shunsui and Nanao spent the following fifteen minutes watching their babies on the screen while attempting to find out whether they were having boys or girls. Nanao had been so relieved to find out that there wasn't anything seriously wrong with her or the babies. She would never admit it to Shunsui, but she'd been worried. Very worried. Shunsui on the other hand was in a very joyous mood and had been overcome with emotion. Nanao noticed that he hadn't even bothered with wiping the tears out of his eyes.


	44. Chapter 44

Hello Eveyone. Just a small note to say, that the original plan was to write about the Hitsugaya's holiday for chapter 44. Thats now been pushed back to chapter 45 because I realised that after revealing that Unohana and Ukitake were indeed Nanao's parents. I decided a bit of back story as to how that all happened was needed. And so this chapter is a result of that. I hope I've done it justice. Also this chapter is dedicated to a very special friend of mine whose been requesting that I do a Uki/Uno fanfic and also wanted to see more Uki/Uno moments in this story. Thank you Melissa, and also thank you for all your endless hours of role playing to help when I was stuck or had writers block *Hugs* You Rock! As the story is reaching its end, I didn't mind in the slightest adding this extra chapter in. I started writing it this morning and haven't stopped until I finished the last sentance about 30 mins ago. Its been fun to write and came out so naturally. After this chapter, its back to the good old Hitsugaya moments. Enjoy and happy bittersweet reading.

* * *

><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 44<p>

Shunsui and Nanao were walking hand in hand through the corridors of the Fourth as Unohana led them back to her office. Having finished examining Nanao and checking her over Unohana had invited them both back to her office for a cup of tea and to update Nanao's records.

They reached the office and Unohana stood to one side to allow them to enter. Nanao walked in first and paused, surprised to see Ukitake sat in one of the seats. She was about to greet him when she faltered, noticing that he seemed rather upset.

Ukitake startled having heard them walk in and Nanao saw him hastily wipe at his eyes.

"Make yourselves comfortable," Unohana said as she stepped in the office after them. Her eyes landed on Ukitake in the chair and she froze on the spot, "Juushiro.. I wasn't expecting you to be here."

Ukitake rose to his feet, "Its okay I'll leave," his voice sounded quite strained.

Unohana reached him and rested her hand on his arm, "Please stay, I was looking for you to tell you about Shunsui and Nanao's news."

There was an awkward moment of silence where Ukitake seemed like he wanted nothing more then to get the hell out of Unohana's office, and where Unohana looked seriously worried.

Nanao averted her gaze and glanced at Shunsui, who was glancing back and forth between Ukitake and Unohana with a serious and knowing look on his face. She managed to catch Shunsui's eye and the look on his face was apologetic. Nanao felt confused. Just what was going on here?

"Juushiro," Unohana spoke in a gentle but firm voice, "Please sit down, you need to stay."

"Fine," Ukitake replied a little waspish. Before he sat down his gaze landed on Nanao and it looked for a brief second as though he was about to crumble. He sank back down into his seat.

Nanao glanced at Shunsui again who was leaning against the window sill just to one side. He'd folded his arms across his chest and had pulled his hat down so his expression was unreadable. Unohana seemed to be taking her time preparing the tea and so Nanao glanced back at Ukitake. He was sitting as still as a statue, yet she could see that he had a death grip on the arm of the chair. She noticed he seemed kind of pale, but his eyes didn't have the dullness they usually had when he'd been ill. On the contrary, his eyes were hard with anger. She noted the red puffiness ringing them, the tell tale signs of a person who'd recently cried.

The tension was so thick in the room, you could have cut it with a knife.

Ukitake must have sensed her gaze on him, because he slowly turned to glance at her. Nanao noticed that his eyes softened slightly on seeing her, but the moment he looked away again they went back to hard and angry.

Nanao got the distinct impression that a ticking time bomb was about to go off. She couldn't understand how Shunsui and Unohana could fail to notice Ukitake's obvious discomfort. Or if they'd noticed, why weren't they acting on it. Not being able to take much more of the silence, Nanao leant forward in her seat and rested her hand over Ukitake's and gave it a squeeze, "Captain Ukitake, are you feeling okay?"

"I'm just tired, its been a long day," Ukitake couldn't even look at her.

"But its not even lunch yet..." Nanao trailed off with a small frown.

"Here we go Nanao dear," Unohana stepped over with a cup of tea and placed it down on the table.

"Thank you."

Unohana then turned her focus to Shunsui, "Would you like a cup of tea Shunsui?"

"I'm good thanks Retsu," Shunsui replied from under his hat, once Unohana had turned her back he took a deep gulp from his sake flask.

Unohana then turned to Ukitake, "Juushiro, would you like a drink?"

Ukitake who'd been rubbing at his temples suddenly slammed his hand down on the arm of the chair and shot to his feet, "How can you just stand there and act like everything's normal Retsu!"

The sudden outburst startled Nanao and she nearly spilled her tea.

"Excuse me?"

"You cant just tell me, what you told me an hour ago and then just run off without an explanation," Ukitake roared.

"I would hardly call tending to a patient as 'running off without an explanation' Juushiro," Unohana managed to reply in her usual calm manner. It was like she wasn't even fazed by Ukitake's anger.

"And now you're just standing there like nothings happened at all!" Ukitake pulled in a sharp breath, "Do you have any idea how utterly betrayed I feel right now," He gasped, "Do you know how it feels to learn that the one person you love... has hidden... and kept... how could you not... the one thing.." he was struggling to form a coherent sentence and breathing was becoming a real issue too.

"Juu!" Shunsui tipped his hat out of his eyes and was by his side a second later, "You're getting yourself worked up," he grabbed his shoulders and guided him back onto the chair.

Unohana came to stand in front of him and placed her hands either side of his cheeks, "Calm down and breathe."

"But how," Ukitake gasped.

"Breathe," Unohana replied firmly, "Just breathe. I know you're upset and that you deserve an explanation, but I cant talk to you if you're shouting or hyperventilating."

Shunsui patted his hands on Ukitake's shoulders, "Slow deep breaths buddy."

"How could you not tell me?" Ukitake asked after a few more breaths, "How could you have kept this from me for so long Retsu?"

Unohana didn't answer, she was waiting for him to calm down fully before she answered any questions.

Shunsui stepped away from Ukitake and stepped over to the couch where Nanao was sitting. He sank down next to her and took her hand, he could feel it trembling slightly. He went to pull her into a hug but she got up and settled down on his knee instead, "What's going on?" She whispered to him.

"I'm not really sure," he lied. Ukitake's words out in the corridor had suddenly come back to him. Foolishly enough, they hadn't registered until now. He'd been too worried about Nanao at the time and then finding out about the twins had totally wiped it from his mind. Until now. His arms wrapped tighter around Nanao's waist.

Once Ukitake had calmed down Unohana stepped away and sat down next to Shunsui on the couch. She was quiet for a few minutes before she replied, "I wanted to tell you Juushiro. I wanted you to know, but I was ordered to keep quiet."

"Look," Shunsui interrupted and scratched the back of his neck, "You two clearly need to talk so me and Nanao will go home and give you some privacy."

"No!" They both answered in unison. Shunsui stayed put.

"The reason why Juushiro is so upset," Unohana continued, "Is because he's just found out that we actually had a child together quite a long time ago, which I never told him about."

Shunsui heard a small gasp escape Nanao's lips, but he remained quiet.

"You would be upset too if the one thing you've really wanted over the years was a child of your own. I started to accept that it was one of those things that wouldn't happen to me. Then I find this out," Ukitake retorted.

They fell into a tense silence again, Nanao couldn't even begin to comprehend how Ukitake was feeling right now.

The silence was growing unbearable again and Nanao was the one to break it again, "Captain Unohana, what happened to your child?"

"I had to give her up," Unohana replied sadly, "The Seireitei was no place for a child at the time. You have to understand Nanao, I didn't want to give up my child. But I was ordered too and I was forbidden from ever telling Juushiro."

"Retsu," Ukitake interrupted, "Tell her."

Nanao glanced between the two of them, "Tell me what?"

"Juushiro I don't think I should."

"TELL HER!" He repeated a bit more forcefully.

"Nanao," Unohana paused briefly, "You are the child that I had to give up. You are actually our daughter."

Nanao glanced up and met Ukitake's eye, waiting for him to deny it.

"I only just found out too," he replied stoically.

"You must be mistaken," Nanao shook her head in disbelief, "I was born out in the Rukongai. I cant be your daughter."

"You weren't born in that village Nanao, however it was where I placed you in the care of somebody I trusted."

"No that cant be right, I don't see how that can even be possible," Nanao shook her head again.

"Nanao you even said it yourself," Shunsui stroked her back, "That you knew you came from the Rukongai, but that you had no memories of it. Your earliest memories were of the Shinigami Academy."

"But still, you must obviously still be mistaken," Nanao just couldn't see how she could possibly be their daughter.

"Retsu," Shunsui spoke up, "Why don't you tell us the full story of what happened, I'm sure we'd all like to know how this came about, especially Nanao and Juushiro."

Unohana took a calming breath and then had a sip of tea, "It was back when we were all thrown into that first vicious war with the Quincy. You both know how hard that war was on everybody."

"How can we ever forget," Shunsui replied, he still bore the scars from those days.

"You'll also remember then that you and Juushiro were away a lot, leading our forces into battle. The Head-Captain at the time chose to direct the fighting away from the Seireitei to avoid innocent lives being lost."

"We did that for two solid years," Ukitake recalled solemnly, "It'd been the longest time we'd ever been apart."

"Out of the blue you came back one day," Retsu reminded him.

"Yes, the campaign wasn't going well and Shunsui had sent me back to report in to the Head-Captain."

"Then you came to visit me afterwards."

Ukitake nodded, "I thought it was that night, my only regret was having to leave the next morning to return to the front lines. I don't think I saw you again for another year after that," Ukitake placed his cup down on the table, "So I'm afraid this is where you're going to have to fill us in Retsu."

Unohana was quiet for a moment as she recalled what happened afterwards.

"It was a few months after that night when I discovered that I was pregnant. Given the circumstances and the fact that we were in the middle of a raging war, I knew the news of a baby would not be welcomed. Especially as a Captain, it was even worst that I was the chief medic. So naturally, I had to hide the pregnancy. It wasn't so bad because the baby was so tiny, it hardly showed. So I was lucky in that way, however I did start to worry the closer I got to my due date. The war was showing no signs of stopping. Then there was that fateful night when the fighting reached the Seireitei, it was the same night that I went into labour...

_The sounds of fighting outside could even be heard deep inside the corridors of the Fourth. Shouts, yells, the clang of swords, the sound of the alarm, multiple explosions. The war had reached the Seireitei in the dead of night and all hell had broken loose. The alarm had been raised over five hours ago and the Fourth had been inundated with casualties._

"_Status," Unohana requested as she made her way over to the latest group of Shinigami that had been brought in on stretchers._

"_This one died en-route, these two are grievously injured, this one got caught in an explosion and the other received multiple arrow wounds."_

"_Place the deceased in with the others, send this one to ward two for burns treatment and send this one through to ward six," Unohana replied in full on triage mode._

"_Yes Captain," As the Shinigami hurried away Unohana pulled in a deep breath and exhaled against the pain. What a time to start with contractions. Yet with how things were at the moment, it wasn't like she could disappear and quietly give birth somewhere. She first noticed the pain a few hours ago, just before the alarm was raised. The contractions were very slow coming at first, but as the crisis had continued on, so had the frequency of the contractions. She estimated she had about an hour tops left._

_Every corridor she walked down all she could hear were her squad members calling for her, asking for advice and direction. _

"_Captain Unohana!" Came an urgent voice from one of the wards she was passing by, "I cant stabilize this one."_

_Unohana stepped into the ward and started examining the deep chest wound. The young Shinigami was in a critical condition, his Soul Chain had sustained the most damage. He'd lost too much blood and he would be dead within minutes. There wasn't anything that could be done, other then, "Give him a strong dose of painkiller to keep him as comfortable as possible."_

_The young medic bowed his head, "Yes Captain."_

_Her Division members knew what that order meant, they knew the patient couldn't be saved._

"_Captain," called somebody else._

_As she stepped over to one of the nurses a humongous explosion shook the very foundations of the Fourth and the whole row of windows smashed into deadly splinters that pelted the inhabitants of the ward. Unohana had thrown a hand up to shield her eyes, she could feel shards of glass embedded in her palm, "My goodness what was that."_

"_It was an arrow bomb," answered a small voice from one of the beds. Unohana glanced at him and saw that his legs were bleeding heavily, "The Quincy fire an arrow and it explodes like a bomb on contact. They alone are responsible for the entire destruction of the third Division."_

_Unohana raised her palm towards the shattered windows, where the sounds of fighting outside were deafening. She uttered a small incantation and a barrier sprung up at the windows instantly cutting off any and all sounds from outside, which also served to protect her patients._

_She felt a sharp pain in her stomach, it felt as though she were being sliced in two. Then she felt fluid gushing down her legs. With horror she realised she was running out of time. Her baby was coming, her waters had broken. Luckily she was already covered in so much blood and other bodily fluids, that she doubted anyone would notice in all the chaos._

_She left the ward and hurried as quickly as she could through the Fourth and towards her office. As soon as she'd made it, she locked the door behind and threw up another kido barrier. Then she entered the small wall in cupboard which she'd set up as a small delivery room. She knew it would be hard to give birth alone, but she'd made sure that she had everything on hand that she'd need._

"Two hours later, I'd finally given birth," Unohana had paused from her story to take another sip of tea, "By then I'd gone beyond exhausted, my reiatsu levels were depleted. Its hard enough giving birth at the best of times with a full reserve of reiatsu, let alone giving birth in the middle of a battle and after healing so many people. Its a miracle I managed to give birth at all. So many number of things could have gone wrong. I held you, and fed you. I would have been content to stay there longer, however things within the Fourth had deteriorated so bad in the few hours I'd been in labour. I could tell from the screams of terror that the enemy had entered the infirmary. So I got up, got dressed and took the strongest painkiller I could. I made sure that you were comfortable then placed you in a basket and put my strongest kido barrier around you. I placed another barrier around the cupboard and finally I placed the third and most strongest barrier around my office. I then drew my sword and joined the battle."

They had all been shocked into silence. As Unohana lifted her cup to her lips, her hands were shaking.

"My goodness," Ukitake's voice was muffled from behind his hands. His elbows were propped on his knees and his face was buried in his hands, "You gave birth during one of the bloodiest battles in the history of the Seireitei. Alone."

"Don't blame yourself Juushiro, you were off fighting in an equally brutal battle," Unohana replied in a soft voice.

"But still.."

"Retsu," Shunsui spoke up, "What happened afterwards?"

Unohana took another calming sip of tea, "I shall never forget what happened the next morning...

_In the early hours of dawn, Unohana had managed to break back into her office after having to kick aside a fair amount of debris that had been blocking her path. The Fourth had been decimated during the nights ferocious battle. The enemy had managed to break through the Fourths outer defences and had forced themselves inside, where they'd slaughtered hundreds of injured patients, whilst they'd been incapacitated in their beds. No where had been safe in the Seireitei._

_The kido barrier she'd placed around her office had collapsed and so had the one she'd placed around the cupboard. After prising the door open she was relieved to find that the one surrounding her baby's basket was still intact. She'd been expecting to find her screaming her head off, but she was sleeping soundly in the basket, no doubt exhausted from crying all night._

_Unohana picked her up and held her close, relieved that no harm had come to her. The baby started to cry and she instinctively started rocking her in her arms, "Shh now now," she soothed, "I bet you're hungry."_

_Not being able to stand being in her destroyed office much longer, Unohana quickly changed the babies diaper and wrapped her in a warm blanket. She then carried her through the destroyed corridors, encountering no one._

_She headed out into one of the Fourths healing gardens that'd seen better days and found a nice quiet spot to settle down. She loosened the front of her robes and started to feed the baby. _

_The baby drank greedily having not had a proper fill the night before, something which Unohana felt very guilty about. As exhausted as she felt, she couldn't help but feel a sense of peace and comfort as she fed her baby._

_That was until.._

"_RETSU UNOHANA!" An angry voice bellowed from behind her._

_She gasped and shot to her feet, she didn't need to look behind to know who it was, "Sensei."_

"_Do you care to explain to me WHY I've had no less then twenty reports stating that during last nights invasion, you appeared to have deserted your post for the duration of at least THREE hours!"_

_Unohana felt the heat of his reiatsu rolling off him and the baby in her arms screwed up her eyes at the loudness of his voice. She adjusted the baby in her arms and tried to soothe her._

"_Where were YOU when the enemy breached the defences and were slaughtering YOUR patients in their beds that you were sworn to PROTECT!"_

_Unohana kept her back to him, in his anger he hadn't yet noticed the baby in her arms._

"_LOOK AT ME!"_

_Unohana gasped but remained where she was. Then she heard his approaching footsteps and he stopped about a metre behind her._

"_EXPLAIN YOURSELF."_

_The baby was growing restless and had started thrashing her little arms about, then she let out a small cry, "Sensei please, lower your voice and reiatsu."_

_He fell silent when he heard the baby crying and he instantly pulled back on his reiatsu. He then came and stood next to her glancing at the bundle in her arms. The baby had gone back to feeding. Unohana pulled her robe tighter around her trying to look a bit more decent in the presense of her superior._

"_Is it yours?" He asked in a gruff voice._

_Unohana lowered her head, "Yes Sensei."_

"_How long.."_

"_She was born during the night."_

"_Why didn't you inform me sooner?"_

"_I knew the news of a baby wouldn't be welcome in the current situation Sir."_

"_Damn right it isn't. We're in the middle of a war and you're a Captain of the Gotei 13! What were YOU thinking!? Did you really think for a minute that you could hide something like this?"_

_A few tears started to roll down her cheeks, "It wasn't planned Sensei."_

"_Who is the Father to this child?" Yamamoto's voice came out in a low growl._

_Unohana kept her silence._

"_Is it one of my boys? Shunsui or Juushiro?" Yamamoto saw the flicker of emotion cross her features, "Juushiro."_

"_Hai," she confirmed quietly._

_Unohana glanced up at Yamamoto and quickly averted her gaze when she saw the angry grimace on his face, "Does he know about it?"_

_Unohana shook her head, "He left for the front lines before I found out I was with child. There's no way he could know."_

_Yamamoto nodded then said, "Get rid of it."_

"_Sensei I cant get rid of HER, she is my daughter!" Unohana protested._

"_Take a good look around Retsu," he swept his arm around the destroyed garden, "The Seireitei is NO place for a child!"_

"_I cant just abandon her like that, not my own flesh and blood."_

"_That child shouldn't even be here in the first place, if I had learnt of your pregnancy before you'd given birth, then I would've had to have referred it to Central 46. Given the fact that we're in the middle of a war, they would have ordered you to abort the baby. Given the current state of affairs the last thing I want is to have central 46 poking their noses into things. This is no place for a child, the only option you have in this situation is to give her up. I lost seven Captains last night, I cant afford to lose you too because you're too busy playing happy families. Get rid of the child, that's an order." _

"_But Juushiro.."_

"_I forbid you to tell him about it. We're barely winning this war as it is, I cant afford for him to become distracted while out on the front lines. Get rid of the child Retsu, it doesn't matter what you do with it. I just don't want it anywhere near the Seireitei whilst this war continues on. Is that understood?"_

_The tears were starting to fall down her cheeks thick and fast, "Hai," she whispered._

"_I'm giving you a day, and I want it gone," The Head-Captain turned on his heel and stormed away back inside the Fourth._

"As much as I resented the Head-Captains decision at the time, I knew deep down that he was right. The Seireitei was no place for a child. Whilst there was a break in the fighting, I took my baby and fled out into the Rukongai. There was a small village where I knew a few people who owed me a debt of gratitude. When I arrived I explained the situation to them and they were all too happy to watch over my baby. I gave them specific instructions to keep a close eye on her, and I warned them that her parents were both powerful Shinigami and that it was highly likely that she would develop powers too. For the time being it was the safest place for her, unless she developed powers by which time Hollows would start to be a problem. I wanted to leave her something, something that she could keep with her. I didn't have a soft toy or a blanket as such, only an old book of mine with basic kido spells in it. So I left it for her. In the hopes that someday it would be of interest to her."

While Unohana paused in her story Shunsui took the time to glance at Ukitake, he was visibly shaken with a look of deep anguish on his face. Nanao was still sat on his knee and he couldn't see her expression, but he could feel that she was holding herself rather still. Then looking back at Unohana, her face was full of remorse.

Unohana took a deep breath and continued, "It was one of the most heartbreaking things I've had to do," her voice was starting to betray her emotions, "But it had to be done. The war raged on and literally two days after I left you out in the Rukongai, I received the worst possible news imaginable. Juushiro and Shunsui's fighting force had been completely obliterated in a brutal battle, and they alone were the only two survivors. They were coming home, but it was questionable as to whether either one of them would pull through."

Shunsui closed his eyes, "That's the one battle that still haunts me in my nightmares, even today," he felt Nanao squeeze his hand and he returned the gesture gratefully.

"A few days after that," Unohana continued, "The war came to an end. Juushiro was in a deep coma and Shunsui was in intensive care. It was a further three months after that before they recovered, and it took a further year before I was happy to declare them fully recovered. The war had changed them both, the trauma of it had gotten to us all and shortly afterwards me and Juushiro parted again. The couple who was looking after my baby out in the Rukongai kept in contact with me, and I would occasionally skirt pass the village when out collecting herbs. But other then that, I stayed away. To see my child would have caused me a lot of pain. I had almost resigned myself to the fact that I would probably never see her again, that was until news of a vicious Hollow attack out in the Rukongai reached my ears. It was the same district where I had left my child...

_Unohana was sat in her office going through the mundane task of sorting a box of patients cards into alphabetical order_ _when she heard hurried footsteps approaching her door. Before the person had even knocked she called, "Come in."_

_The door opened and a recently new Division member bowed before her, "Apologies for interrupting Captain, but I have an urgent message for you," the young girl held her hands out and Unohana crossed over to her and took the message._

_After reading the message she rushed out the door. On the way she ran into her Lieutenant and asked him to keep an eye on things until she got back. She'd set a fast pace of Shunpo and had reached the outskirts of the village about thirty minutes after departing the Fourth._

_She touched down in a clump of trees and a whiff of Hollow invaded her nostrils. She kept to the trees for cover and soon the whole village came into view. It had been completely destroyed, not a soul left in sight. She felt a heavy weight bearing down in her chest and she had to bite back a sob._

_She wandered through the ruins of the village feeling a deep sense of despair. That was until she heard the faint sound of crying. It was definitely a child crying too._

_Unohana hurried through the ruins of the village, each step taking her closer to the crying child. She was closing in on the child's location when she stopped abruptly having heard a very familiar male voice. She ducked behind the nearest ruined house and peeked around the corner._

_A small smile graced her lips when she recognized the familiar long mane of white hair, and saw Ukitake crouched down in front of the crying child trying to soothe it. She craned her neck to see the child and felt her heart flutter when she realised it was a small girl with ivory skin and short black hair. She knew with one glance that it was her child. She ducked back behind the house and listened._

"_Don't be scared little girl I wont hurt you," Ukitake soothed._

_Unohana couldn't help but wonder why Ukitake was out in this part of the Rukongai, but she was relieved that he'd been here at the right time._

"_What's your name?"_

_The little girl hugged her knees to her chest and shrugged._

"_You're all alone aren't you?" Ukitake received a small nod, "You must be hungry, would you like something to eat?" He rummaged in his pocket and pulled out a fat sweet bun and handed it to the girl. _

_She took it, took an experimental bite, then proceeded to devour the rest._

_Ukitake chuckled, "My my you have a sweet tooth," he allowed the child to finish eating then he said, "You cant stay here on your own, its not safe."_

_The small girl looked up at him nervously._

"_Will you let me take you somewhere safe? I mean you no harm." _

_The girl seemed to be considering it for a minute before she gave him a small nod. _

_Ukitake swept down and lifted the tiny child into his arms, "I know just the place," thinking of the nice orphanage he regularly visited. He started carrying her away when she suddenly started to wiggle in his arms, wanting to be put down, "What's wrong?" He asked placing the child down._

_She scurried over to the building where she'd been cowering against and disappeared under the foundations. She was gone for a few minutes then popped back up clutching a book to her chest._

"_Oh you like books," Ukitake observed, noticing that the book was very old and looking a bit dog eared, "Can I see it?"_

_The small girl approached him cautiously and held the book out to him. Ukitake took the book and flicked through the pages._

"_Its a kido book," he announced surprised, "For beginners."_

_The girl nodded her head._

"_I don't suppose you know how to use any do you?" He knew it was a long shot but it was worth asking._

_The girl held out her palm and a feeble red orb spluttered and then died._

_Ukitake was astonished, the girl couldn't be any more then six years old. Change of plan he thought, this girl wasn't going to an orphanage. She would be much safer if she could get into the Shinigami Academy, but would she be able to do so with being so young? He decided it would be worth a shot. Even if she was too young, at least he could find her an orphanage somewhere in the Seireitei where she would be better protected. He gave the book back and the girl clutched it to her chest. She clearly treasured it. "Come on little one, time to go."_

_Unohana could only watch as Ukitake took their daughter away from her. If only he __knew the true identity of the girl he was carrying, and that she was actually his daughter._

After finishing her story, all the tension flowed out of her body and Unohana flopped her head back against the couches head rest. Ukitake, Shunsui and Nanao were all obviously deep in thought. She closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose.

After their longest silence yet, Nanao spoke up first once again, "I'm sorry, but I just don't see how it could be me. Its true, that I don't remember much of my life before the Shinigami Academy, but surely I would've remember a complete stranger rescuing me and taking me to the Academy," Nanao was looking at Ukitake as she said this.

Ukitake shook his head, "You were too young and they wouldn't accept you into the Academy straight away, so I placed you in an orphanage that was run by one of my relatives. I told them once you were old enough, or when you showed signs of having more spiritual pressure to enrol you with the Academy."

Nanao rubbed at her temples, "Why cant I remember a damn thing before my time at the Academy. I'm sorry but without solid personal memories to back it up, I'm always going to be doubtful of this."

"What if I showed you another type of memory that couldn't be disputed Nanao?" Unohana asked.

Nanao seemed thoughtful, "Feel free," she replied as she rubbed a hand over her belly where she knew her twins were resting happily.

Unohana got to her feet and crossed over to her desk. She pulled a drawer open and pulled out a small box. She then came back over to the couch and sat down while placing the box on the table. She pulled the lid off and started rummaging through the photo's inside. She selected one photograph and handed it to Nanao.

Shunsui glanced over her shoulder and smiled, "I remember that day. I managed to coerce a grumpy teenager out of her quarters to join me for some ice-cream," he looked at the photo with fondness. Both he and Nanao were holding an ice-cream cone and they both had a huge glob of ice-cream stuck on their noses, "I had no idea you had a copy of this photo Retsu."

Unohana smiled at him sadly before pulling out another photograph, "This is me as a teenager."

Both Shunsui's and Nanao's eyes went wide in shock. As young teenagers, Nanao and Unohana could have been twins. The only difference being that Unohana's photo was in black and white, whereas the one of teenage Nanao with Shunsui was in colour.

The photographs slipped from Nanao's fingers and fluttered to the floor. Nanao bent forwards and rested her elbows on her knees and buried her face in her hands, "It is true.." she replied in utter shock.


	45. Chapter 45

Hello Everybody! Its been a long time coming, but I've finally managed to find the time to finished off this chapter. Due to a sheer lack of time, I've had to keep putting it on the backburner while I dealt with a few other projects, (Mainly my studies) I've had a lot of coursework to do, plus an exam. I've also started up my own business. I'm still just as busy as ever, but I stick by by promise that I will finish this story :) I can count the number of chapters remaining on one hand now. I'm quite excited about the conclusion of this story. I've had the ending stored up for well over a year now, it will be great to finally be able to write it and let you in on it. Thank you for your patience and as always, I'm grateful to everbody who left a review for the last chapter, and all of the people who favourited and decided to follow the story. Bright blessings to all of you and Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 45<p>

At the start of their holiday, two weeks had seemed such a long time.

They had done so many fun things in their two weeks off, that the time had simply flown by. Now they were on their last day and both Toushiro and Rangiku were thinking that two weeks just hadn't been long enough.

For the first week they'd stayed in a holiday cottage by the sea. That had been a very memorable week. Both he and Rangiku had discovered a big gap in Kotaro's education that they'd both seemed to have overlooked. Kotaro didn't know how to swim. It was odd, all those times Toushiro had been working in the office, he'd always imagined Rangiku taking Kotaro to health land with her. The baths they had there were huge. He'd just assumed that Kotaro would've learnt by having a paddle while Rangiku was having a soak. He asked Rangiku about it and her thoughts on the matter, was that it was one of those Father/Son things that he was suppose to do. He'd had no idea that it was suppose to be him. Regardless of who should have been responsible for teaching Kotaro how to swim, they'd agreed to take him to a nearby swimming pool to teach him the basics. It went well and Kotaro soon grasped the concept of what to do. Toushiro had felt a bit more at ease about taking his son onto the beach after that.

The beach had been fun. For the duration of the week, he and Kotaro had taken part in a parent/child beach competition. They were both competing against other children and their parents in events such as beach volleyball, sand sculpting, kite flying, building the best life raft and treasure hunting. Rangiku had been content to spend the time cheering them on and topping up her tan. They came third place in the beach volleyball, and the kite flying had been a huge flop. The treasure hunting had been fun, but they'd narrowly missed out on finding the golden shell first. The life raft building had been a little frustrating, but at least theirs had been able to float. Then there had been the sand sculpting competition, which they'd managed to win first place. They hadn't just built the usual run of the mill sandcastle. They'd built a huge fortress.

The judges had been very impressed by the sheer size of it, and the little details such as realistic sand gargoyles decorating the edges of the rooftops, and the way the ivy ran up the maidens tower. They were even more impressed by the durability of it. One of the judges had leant against one of the walls and it hadn't even budged or crumbled.

"_My my! It's as hard as ice!" _The judge had exclaimed before taking a photograph and declaring them the winners.

Toushiro smirked at the memory. Ice sculpting was his forte. It didn't take much effort to freeze the water and sand together and then manipulate the shape.

Then they'd done the whole paddling in the sea, eating ice-cream in one of the many cafés lining the sea front, walking along the tops of the cliffs and taking in the views. It had been a magical week.

For the second week they had relocated to the city and had decided to do a different thing each day.

The aquarium they'd visited had truly been amazing. It boasted large floor to ceiling, glass fronted tanks, that hosted an array of sea-life from all over the world. They had tropical fish, cold water fish, sharks, turtles, pretty much everything. The highlight of the day had been when they'd walked through a ten metre long, glass water tunnel. It felt like they were actually under the sea as they watched sharks, turtles and a various other fish floating and swimming just metres above their heads.

It certainly would be something that neither of them would be forgetting any time soon.

It'd been fun introducing Kotaro to pizza. With living in the Soul Society where the main diet was mostly Japanese with rice balls, pickled vegetables, sushi and noodles as such, Kotaro was used to using chopsticks with his meals. His face had been a picture when he first saw a pizza and wasn't sure exactly how to eat it or what was on it. Rangiku had decided to get him a plain cheese pizza, with a few separate toppings so he could experiment for himself. As they found out, he was just like his Father and seemed to prefer the meat toppings.

They'd also watched a movie at the cinema, Kotaro had been puzzled by the funny cardboard glasses at first and Toushiro had to suppress his chuckles when his son nearly jumped out of his seat when the 3D movie had started. Kotaro had been that startled by the images jumping out of the screen that his tub of popcorn had gone flying. Toushiro had to buy him another tub, this time he got an extra large for them all to share, and that's when he discovered just how much Kotaro loved popcorn too.

Toushiro had wanted to take Kotaro to a theme park, but there wasn't any nearby and it would've meant a very long trip just to get to one. Also he wasn't too sure whether Kotaro would be big enough to go on any of the rides. So in the end they'd settled on going to a little funfair that was being held nearby.

Rangiku thoroughly enjoyed taking Kotaro shopping. They had spent hours picking out various outfits and playing dress up. In Toushiro's mind the day had dragged by in one long blur of shop after shop, after shop, after shop. The city had been bustling that day. Every shop that they'd gone into had been hot and crowded and he'd turned into a bit of a nervous wreck, worrying about Kotaro getting lost. However when they'd visited one of the big toy shops, he found that he did actually have fun. It had been great to watch Kotaro's eyes light up upon seeing all of the different toys and gadgets on offer. It'd been even better to see his son so excited that he just rotated on the spot not knowing where to go first. They could've easily blown their entire holiday budget in one go in that toy shop, it was lucky that they chose to go near to the end of their Holiday.

Then the last thing they'd decided to do, was to visit the bowling alley which they did the day before.

_Kotaro watched with a frown as Toushiro and Rangiku tried to explain the concept of bowling to him. Apparently he was supposed to hurl a heavy ball down the lane and try to knock over all the pins._

_Toushiro placed the smallest and lightest ball into Kotaro's hands, which felt more like a boulder to him, "Go and give it a shot little man."_

"_You can do it sweetie," Rangiku encouraged._

_Kotaro shuffled up to the line, slipping and sliding all the way in a ridiculous pair of shoes that had more of those annoying laces. His eyes went wide when he realised how long the lane was. He glanced back at his parents who gave him encouraging gestures._

_He stared back down the lane and awkwardly readjusted the ball in his arms, before he chucked it in front of him. The ball landed with a loud THUD on the wooden surface and rolled forward at a snails pace. It made a couple of metres before feebly veering off to the right and into the gutter._

_Kotaro blew air out of his mouth moodily. Such a strange game this was._

"_Aww sweetie you'll get it next time," Rangiku cooed and waved him back over to her, "Lets watch Daddy and see how he does it."_

_Toushiro stepped up and selected his bowling ball. He lined up his shot and took aim, before quickly moving forwards and hurling the ball down the centre of the lane. The ball ploughed into the centre pin and wiped the rest of the pins out._

_Toushiro turned on his heel to face them with a smirk on his face, "Hardly a challenge."_

_Rangiku raised an eyebrow and met his challenge, "Beginners luck, I bet you couldn't do that next time."_

"_Actually I think you'll find that I can," Toushiro smirked back, "More to the point can YOU do that?"_

And that was how both he and Rangiku got themselves into a rather competitive game of bowling. For the first four goes, they were matching each other strike for strike. That was until Rangiku only hit nine pins, the last remaining pin wobbled precariously for a few seconds but refused to go down.

"_Damn it! Stupid pin!" she huffed and picked up another bowling ball to try again, but it swerved off and completely missed the pin._

_Toushiro gave her a very smug grin before turning to Kotaro, "You're up little man."_

_Kotaro blew air out of his mouth in a little huff, "I don't like this game. The balls too heavy and I never hit the pins," he folded his arms across his chest sulking._

"_Would you like me to take your go for you this time sweetie?" Rangiku asked brightly, "I'll knock them all down for you."_

"_Tch, if you can," Toushiro commented from next to her._

_Rangiku ignored him and picked up a bowling ball and sent it hurling down the lane, its crashed into the pins wiping them all out. She sauntered back over to Toushiro and winked, "Oh I can."_

_Feeling annoyed and not wanting to be out done, Toushiro grabbed his bowling ball and just as he was about to throw it, he injected just the tiniest amount of spiritual pressure into it and then let it go. The ball whizzed down the lane at lightning speed and earned him another strike. He walked back to the seats, "Oh look I got another strike," he said innocently._

"_That was cheating!" Rangiku admonished, "What sort of example is that showing Kotaro?"_

_They both glanced at Kotaro who was busy amusing himself by trying to get candy out of the candy machine without a coin and seemed completely uninterested in his parents._

"_He wasn't even watching," retorted Toushiro._

"_That still doesn't make it all right," Rangiku added, "I felt that little bit of pressure."_

"_You're just irritated because you didn't think to do it first," Toushiro shot back._

_Rangiku turned his back on him and grabbed a bowling ball, she stepped up and just like Toushiro, she too injected a bit of spiritual pressure into her shot which worked effectively in getting her a strike, "Two can play that game," she harrumphed when __she returned to him._

And so their game had heated up rather considerably after that. Kotaro sat the rest of the game out having grown bored with it, and watched as his parents grew increasingly competitive.

It had been Toushiro's final go when he'd injected so much spiritual pressure, that not only did he knock his own pins down, but the resulting mini shock-wave rippled into a few lanes on either side and knocked all those pins down too.

Kotaro giggled loudly and clapped his hands. Rangiku and Toushiro stared ahead at the eight different lanes that all had their pins knocked over. Toushiro was trying to hide the smugly impressed look on his face, while Rangiku was spitting and fuming. That was until a few other people surrounding them started pointing at the pins and saying, "Did you see that!"

"Time to go!" Rangiku said and had grabbed Toushiro's arm and started carting him away.

Yes, they'd gotten more then a little carried away. But it had been fun.

Toushiro thought that he would suggest a bowling alley back in the Soul Society, one that could easily stand high amounts of spiritual pressure. The possibilities were endless with this game.

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><p>And so now they'd reached their final day and now they were sat in the middle of a large grassy park with their picnic blanket spread out beneath them. To say it was October in the Living World, the weather had been glorious. According to the weather forecasts, the humans had been experiencing a rare heatwave, an extended summer so to speak.<p>

"Oh look at that one Mummy!" Kotaro was flat on his back and pointing a finger up towards the sky, "It looks like Yori."

Rangiku was stretched out next to Kotaro, "So it does sweetie," she smiled warmly at him.

Toushiro smiled and glanced around the large park. A short distance behind him was a wooded area. Over to the left was a children's play area where there were climbing frames, see-saws, swings, slides, roundabouts and a variety of other things that Toushiro hadn't seen before, but looked like a lot of fun.

Over to the right was a tarmacked area which housed tennis courts, basketball courts and what looked like a running track, then directly next to that area was a fielded area where he could see the outline of a football pitch.

On the pitch were several children kicking around a football. They were all of varying ages and the coach was shouting instructions at them. Toushiro guessed it was a football practise session. Several parents who were accompanying the kids were on the edges of the pitch observing their kids.

Toushiro watched the proceedings and then about ten minutes later the coach blew his whistle and the kids started to disperse. It seemed practise was over now.

"What's happening over there Daddy?" Kotaro asked looking over to the football field.

"They were just having a football practise little man, they've finished now."

They watched as one of the kids picked up a ball and shouted something to his friends. Soon several other kids started running over to the field and lining up on the edge.

"What's happening now?" Kotaro asked as he watched a few more kids converging on the field.

Rangiku saw two kids standing in front of the line of kids and each one was taking their turn to pick another kid, "Oh I believe they are picking teams for a game of football."

Kotaro perked up slightly, "I love football!"

Toushiro glanced at Rangiku with an enquiring look on his face. Rangiku caught his gaze and nodded, "Why don't you head over there sweetie and see if you can join in with them."

Kotaro's face lit up and he jumped to his feet and dashed off towards the field. Rangiku started packing up the picnic things, "We may as well relocate over there for a bit."

Toushiro watched as Kotaro skidded to a halt at the end of the line, his son really was fast on his feet. Compared to the other kids though Kotaro was tiny, the other children seemed to tower over him and they had to be of a similar age group to him, "Do you think he'll be okay?"

"Lets just wait and see Toshi," Rangiku had a soft expression on her face, she knew Toushiro had certain anxieties about Kotaro mixing with other kids. Things hadn't been easy for Toushiro when he'd been growing up. "Will you help me pack up please?"

Toushiro pulled his gaze away from the football field and started packing things into the basket in a random manner.

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><p>Meanwhile Kotaro was practically vibrating with excitement as he stood in line with the other remaining children that hadn't been picked yet.<p>

The captain of the first team was a tall lanky boy who was wearing branded sportswear from top to toe. As the line of kids thinned out, he seemed to be taking longer to pick his next team mate. His eyes scanned over the line several times before he scowled at one girl in particular and said rather meanly, "How many times do I have to tell you that you cant play four eyes!"

The girl in question look saddened and disappointed then slowly walked away from the football pitch with her head lowered.

"I guess I'll have to take you then," he jabbed a finger at a skinny boy with a look of distaste on his face," he then turned to the other teams captain, a blonde girl with pigtails, "Your turn to pick."

The girl surveyed the remaining kids with a bored expression.

"Are you going to pick already?" The boy snapped impatiently.

The girl lifted her finger and pointed at each kid in turn, "Fatty. Geek. Loser. Weirdo. Useless."

Kotaro watched as the girl pointed to the kid next to him, then carried onto the kid on his other side. He frowned, not really understanding why the two kids were acting the way they were, towards the other kids.

After pointing at the last kid the girl turned to the other boy, "Lets just play."

The boy nodded and turned to the few kids who weren't picked, "You heard her, get out of here you losers."

The few kids started dispersing and Kotaro remained standing there, he folded his arms across his chest and frowned.

As the girl was about to turn away, she spotted Kotaro and tilted her head to one side, "Oh look, a new kid. I haven't seen him around before."

The boy paused and glanced at Kotaro, "He's a baby, I'm not having a baby on my team," he grouched and walked away, "You take him."

"I guess you're on my team then," the girl then turned and started walking out onto the field. When she noticed that Kotaro wasn't following she paused and called, "Well are you coming then? Don't tell me that you want to play with those losers," she pointed and Kotaro glanced behind him. All the kids that hadn't been picked were standing in a small group just behind him, "Look, you're obviously new around here. I'll make it easier for you. Some kids around here are better then others, like us for example," she waved her arm towards the kids on the football pitch, "While others," she turned her nose up at the rejected kids as though they were dirt, "Aren't."

Kotaro glanced between the two groups feeling confused. His Mum was always telling him that it was both rude and wrong to be mean to other people and call them bad things. Yet these kids were openly making rude comments about the other kids.

"Are you coming then?" The girl asked again.

Kotaro frowned, "No."

"No?" The girl asked surprised, "Why not?" She added sounding like a brat. She was clearly used to getting her own way.

Kotaro pointed at the kids behind him, "If they're not allowed to play, then I don't want to play."

"Only the cool kids are allowed to play," she stated stroppily, "They aren't cool."

"Well I only play with nice people," Kotaro pointed at her, "And you're not nice," he then turned on his heel and started to walk away. Or tried to at least. He wasn't expecting someone to be standing behind him, and so he bumped into them, rebounded off again and tumbled onto the floor.

He looked up a bit dazed and saw a mammoth boy standing before him. He was taller then Kotaro, but was also quite large weight wise. The big boy stared down at Kotaro in surprise.

Kotaro was about to say something when a large hand shot out of nowhere and grabbed his arm then hoisted him back to his feet, "I'm sorry shorty, I didn't see you down there."

Kotaro stared back at the big boy feeling a bit bewildered.

The boy then thrust his arm out, "I'm Goro."

Kotaro saw the outstretched hand and remembered what his Dad had told him. He took the hand and shook it, "I'm Kotaro."

Goro grinned then turned to the other children and started making introductions. Afterwards he then turned back to Kotaro, "Do you know how to play?"

Kotaro looked a little puzzled until the boy produced a football and tossed it to him. He deftly caught it with his chest, then allowed it to drop to his foot, which he then flicked up to balance on his head. Kotaro then started to perform the tricks that Toushiro had taught him.

"Hey you're pretty good," Goro replied impressed, "But are you any good at scoring?"

Kotaro grinned and turned away from the kids looking for a target. The only one he could see were the goalposts that the other kids were using on the field. No matter, he thought. Kotaro started bouncing the ball off his toes, he then bounced it off his knees slowly picking up speed. He then allowed it to drop to the ground and then brought his leg around to blast it one. He put a lot of force into it and sent it soaring across the football pitch. It curved round in an arc and started to lose height. On its descent it bounced off the snotty, boy-captains head, who never saw it coming, and landed neatly into the goal. All the kids on the field paused to look around to see who had kicked it.

"Wow that was awesome?" The small group of rejected kids said in unison.

"Oh man, the balls all the way over there now," Goro complained.

"I'll go fetch it!" Kotaro turned on his heel and started zooming across the field. Within seconds he'd run the length of the field, retrieved the ball and had returned to the small group of kids without even losing his breath.

"You're fast too!" Goro rushed forward and draped his arm around Kotaro's shoulders, "He's being on my team!"

* * *

><p>"What do you suppose that was all about?" Rangiku asked feeling a bit baffled as she packed the last few items into the basket, "For a moment it looked as though he'd been picked."<p>

Toushiro got to his feet scowling, "I'll go and see if he's okay."

Rangiku's hand landed on his arm preventing him from going, "Don't go barging in."

"But-"

"Look," Rangiku pointed to where Kotaro was giggling along with the smaller group of kids, "He's fine."

"He seemed excited about playing football with those kids, I wonder why he chose not to?" Toushiro wondered aloud.

Rangiku flopped back down onto the blanket, "Let him play, I'm sure he'll tell us why later."

Toushiro sat back down on the blanket next to Rangiku but his gaze was on Kotaro.

Rangiku peered at him and giggled.

Toushiro glanced at her and raised an eyebrow, "What's so amusing?"

"Nothing," she shook her head but failed to hide her smile.

"Its something," Toushiro scowled, "Out with it."

Rangiku sighed, "Its just, I never expected you to be an over-anxious parent."

"I'm not over anxious!"

"Yes you are," Rangiku smiled and cupped his chin in her hand, "Its not a bad thing though," she leaned in and kissed him, "At least I know that Kotaro will always be safe with you."

Toushiro glanced back over to Kotaro, "He seems to be mixing well."

"Of course he is," Rangiku agreed happily, "I've always said that Kotaro's inherited my charming personality and has that certain ability to put anyone at ease."

"Tch, are you trying to say that I'm not charming?"

"Not at all, I'm just saying that you're a bit more reserved than me when it comes to social situations. I can comfortably strike up and maintain a conversation with a total stranger, whereas you would be quite guarded. I like that Kotaro is slightly guarded when someone who he doesn't know talks to him, but I also like it that he can easily strike up and maintain a conversation with the people who he does know."

"Hmm," Toushiro seemed thoughtful for a moment, "Did you know that he's a whiz at maths?"

"Is he?" Rangiku asked surprised.

Toushiro nodded, "He was sitting on my knee in the office when I was doing paperwork. He must've picked it up by watching me. I only noticed when he pointed out a mistake to me. I double checked and he was actually right."

Rangiku clenched her fists and squealed, "I love finding out about his little quirks and who he gets them from," she threw her arms around his neck and rested her cheek on his shoulder, "It would be lovely to have another one."

Toushiro coughed. And coughed again, "Another one?"

"Mm-hmm," she hummed in his ear.

"Are you serious?"

"Of course."

"Another baby?"

Rangiku sighed patiently, "Yes, another baby Toushiro."

"I don't know about that Rangiku," Toushiro frowned and scratched his head.

"Look I'm not saying that we should try right away for another child," Rangiku reassured him, "I just wanted to... broach the subject so to speak."

"Rangiku..."

"Will you at least think about it rather then just dismiss it without any thought."

"Why do you want another child?"

Rangiku pulled away from him so she could see his face, "I don't want Kotaro growing up being an only child. I truly would like him to grow knowing what its like to have a sibling. I never knew what that was like."

Toushiro sighed, "I guess I never thought about that. I had Momo growing up. She drove me crazy more times then I can remember, but still."

"It was still nice having a sibling right?"

"Yeah," Toushiro fell deep into thought and Rangiku settled her head back down on his shoulder.

"Will you think about it though?"

Toushiro nodded, "I'll think about it."

They both sat there in silence, the sun warming their backs as they watched Kotaro, who was happily playing with his small group of friends that he seemed to have made. They were both aware that their holiday was rapidly drawing to a close, and that in a few hours they needed to head back and begin packing again. Yet they were both feeling happy, relaxed and perfectly content to just sit there.

Toushiro pulled his gaze away from Kotaro for a few seconds while he glanced at Rangiku. Now that the idea of having another child had been planted in his head, he couldn't help but imagine what a second child would be like, if they chose to have one.

Rangiku smiled at him and sighed softly. He closed the distance and kissed her. He guessed only tell would tell.

* * *

><p>~Taken from Hitsugaya's Nightmare Before Christmas~<p>

_Toushiro pulled Rangiku closer and rested his head on her shoulder. He glanced over to the Christmas tree where Kotaro was happily working his way through the presents with his new little friend helpfully licking his ears, "He looks so happy Rangiku."_

_"I know he does," she wiped at her face and Toushiro realised that a few tears were streaming down her face._

_"Are you feeling okay?" He asked a little concerned._

_"Happy tears," she replied waving his concern away with a smile, "Its just lovely to be together with you and Kotaro. Its even nicer to see my little baby so happy. He's been wanting a friend for ages."_

_Toushiro sighed, "I had no idea Rangiku. No wonder he was upset when I told him he couldn't have a puppy," he concluded feeling guilty._

_"Don't feel guilty, everything's all worked out in the end," Rangiku reminded him knowing all to well how he'd be feeling, "But you should know something."_

_"What's that?" Toushiro whispered in her ear._

_"At first Kotaro didn't ask Santa for a puppy," Rangiku admitted in a low voice._

_Toushiro glanced at her with a quizzical expression on his face, "Then what did he ask for?"_

_Rangiku smirked back at him, "A baby brother or sister. Did you know that Kotaro wants to be a big brother?"_

_Toushiro stared back at her, "Thank goodness he decided to change his mind," he managed to say._

_"Toshi, how would you feel if I told you I wanted another child?" Rangiku asked seriously._

_Toushiro looked away from her and his eyes landed back on Kotaro. Truthfully he knew he'd be delighted to have another child. The last five years had been five of the happiest years of his life, words could not describe how much he loved and cared for his son._

_"It would make me feel incredibly happy Rangiku," he planted a soft kiss on her neck, just below her ear, "Merry Christmas."_

_"I'm pleased you feel that way Toushiro," Rangiku gripped his wrists and pushed his arms away from her so she could step out of his embrace. As she stepped away from him to join Kotaro by the tree she paused and glanced back over her shoulder at him, "Because I'm pregnant again," she grinned happily then knelt down next to Kotaro._

_Toushiro stood there with his mouth hanging open completely dumbfounded, "P..P..Pregnant...?"_

_"Come on Daddy!" Kotaro yelled at him sounding annoyed, "These presents wont open themselves!"_

_Toushiro snapped out of his daze and stumbled over to the tree to join Rangiku and Kotaro. He dropped down to his knees and stared at Rangiku in complete shock._

"_Here we go Daddy?" Kotaro shoved a present into his hands and he absently started pulling the wrapping paper off, unable to take his eyes off Rangiku._

_Rangiku glanced at him and smiled, she leaned in and planted a kiss on his lips, "Kotaro picked that present for you himself."_

_Toushiro glanced down and saw a medium sized book. He opened it and saw that it was in fact a photo album. He flicked through it and realised that all the pictures were of him and Kotaro._

"_Its a father/son photo album," Rangiku whispered in his ear, "For all of those special moments you and Kotaro have had. I've left half of it blank so that you can add to it as he grows up."_

"_Its wonderful, I love it," Toushiro's voice sounded a bit strangled. He closed the book and held it close to him, as though it was the most precious thing in the world. _

"_Toushiro," Rangiku began, then stopped._

_Toushiro took a small breath then suddenly blurted out, "Boy or girl?"_

_Rangiku grinned happily, "I thought you'd never ask," she closed the distance between them and kissed his cheek. She then whispered into his ear, "A little girl."_

_Toushiro smiled softly. They were going to have a little girl. He couldn't believe it.  
><em>


	46. Chapter 46

Hello everybody, thank you for your continued support and I'm really happy that you are still enjoying the story. I feel quite sad that the story is rapidly drawing to an end now. Thank you to everyone who left a review, favourited or added me to your alerts. I have have many more stories stored away in my mind. After writing two long stories pretty much back to back, plus a little filler (Christmas fic) I feel that I'll focus on a few one shots before I dive right in with another long story. At this stage, I believe there will only be one, maybe two chapters left now. Plus I have an amusing epilogue stored away in my mind which I'm looking forward to writing. Thank you for sticking with me this far :)

* * *

><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 46<p>

Toushiro found it surprising how quickly he'd managed to get back into the swing of things after returning from their holiday. It'd taken him a few hours to get back into 'Captain mode,' but by lunch time he'd been furiously tackling the paperwork that had been streaming into the office that morning. By the next day it'd been as though he'd never been away.

It was the usual weekly Captains meeting, and as usual the Head-Captain was droning on and on about something or the other. Toushiro had tried very hard to pay attention since he'd missed out on the last two meetings, but as the meeting wore on, his focus was wearing thin. It really was the same 'Usual' things.

It wasn't just him that was finding the meeting rather grating. To his left Shunsui had pulled his hat right down over his eyes, and every now and then Toushiro would catch the odd snore emanating from him. To his right Kurotsuchi kept muttering under his breath and tutting every time the Head-Captain seemed to be rounding up his conclusions, only to go onto another topic. Across the room, Zaraki seemed more interested in digging around in his ear with his pinky. Komamura was paying full attention as usual, however his ears seemed a bit droopier then normal. He couldn't see how Kuchiki, Unohana and Soifon were holding up without stepping out of line slightly to look.

Toushiro closed his eyes and sighed softly, he could feel that his knees had locked up from standing in the same position for two solid hours. Surely the meeting should be ending soon.

He glanced over to where Ukitake would usually be standing. His place was ominously empty. It wasn't uncommon for Ukitake to miss a Captains meeting. The gentle Captain never knew when a bout of illness would strike. However since Kotaro had accidentally cured Ukitake of the majority of his symptoms, and since it was now common knowledge throughout the Seireitei that Ukitake no longer suffered so much with the awful disease, his absence couldn't be easily brushed off any more. Although it wasn't like Ukitake to skip out on a meeting without a good cause.

Toushiro was jolted back to attention by the thud of the Head-Captains stick, "And that concludes today's Captains meeting. Dismissed."

Kurotsuchi was already heading for the door, and so was Zaraki. They both got there at the same time and they were both glaring at each other, silently threatening each other to move.

Shunsui draped his arm heavily around Toushiro and started dragging him towards the door, "Yare Yare kiddo, that was a long one today."

"Would you please let go of me," Toushiro replied icily.

Shunsui grinned and kept his arm around Toushiro as he barged his way through the blockade caused by Kurotsuchi and Zaraki, "Oops pardon me gentlemen," he tipped his hat back and grinned goofily at the two Captains as he passed through the doors.

"How RUDE!" Kurotsuchi screeched, while Zaraki called Shunsui some colourful names.

Out in the corridor Toushiro managed to dislodge Shunsui and he started to walk at his own unimpeded pace, "Was that really necessary?"

"I never miss a chance to rub Kurotsuchi the wrong way," Shunsui grinned boyishly.

"I would have to agree with Toushiro, that was hardly necessary Shunsui," came Unohana's gentle voice from behind them.

"Unohana," Toushiro greeted politely.

"Hello Toushiro," Unohana fell into step on Shunsui's other side. They walked along in a comfortable silence until they reached the main outdoor courtyard, where a fresh gust of cool air greeted them.

Shunsui breathed in appreciatively, "Ahh that's most welcome after being cooped up in there for two hours straight."

"Tch, it was an usually long meeting today," Toushiro agreed.

"Damn Juu's a lucky git for missing this one. Where is he anyway?" Shunsui directed the question towards Unohana.

Unohana slid her eyes closed and sighed softly, "I don't know."

Shunsui sighed and scratched the back of his head, "Things are still not good between you two, are they?"

"I'd prefer not to discuss it Shunsui, if you don't mind," Unohana replied in her soft and polite tone. The other Captains were only a short distance behind them and easily within hearing range.

Shunsui couldn't blame her for not wanting to talk about it. Following the revelations from that day at the fourth, he'd witnessed the biggest argument that the pair had ever had to date. And Shunsui had witnessed many of them throughout the years.

Shunsui had told Rangiku all about it upon their return home, and Rangiku in return had told Toushiro everything.

Toushiro had been furious with Rangiku for sticking her nose in and ultimately being the reason for this whole can of worms being opened up. However he soon mellowed and acknowledged that, it needed to have come out sooner or later. It was one of those rare situations that the longer it was left unsaid, the harder it would've been for everyone involved.

"I'll leave you two alone to talk," Toushiro glanced between Unohana and Shunsui. Unohana had closed her eyes and given Toushiro a small grateful nod.

Shunsui clapped him on the shoulder, "Thanks Kiddo."

As Toushiro started walking away he heard Unohana ask Shunsui in a quiet voice, "Have you seen or spoken to Juushiro?"

"I'm sorry Retsu, I haven't," Shunsui replied solemnly.

Toushiro stepped into shunpo and roof hopped back to the Tenth. He wasn't exactly dawdling, but he wasn't in any rush to get back either. Upon touching down outside his office, he heard a flurry of movement from within.

He opened the door and stepped inside, surprisingly Rangiku was sat at her desk sorting through a bit of the paperwork. She looked up from the form she was reading and smiled at him, "Hi Toshi."

"Hi," he pulled Hyourimaru off his shoulder and placed it on the sword rack behind his desk.

"You were gone ages," Rangiku hopped over to him and hugged him from behind, "Long meeting?"

"Just a bit," Toushiro sighed and turned so he could kiss her, "Where's little man?"

Rangiku smiled and guided him over to the window. Toushiro looked outside and saw Kotaro practising his kata's with the wooden tanto he'd been borrowing.

"He's been out there about an hour," Rangiku informed as she rested her head against his shoulder.

"What have you been up to all morning?" Toushiro asked conversationally.

"Oh you know," Rangiku waved her hand.

Toushiro took another look at Rangiku's desk. There was no way she'd actually been doing any paperwork. When he'd been outside, he'd assumed the flurry of movement had been Kotaro. He glanced at the couch and saw the tell-tale indent usually left behind after someone had been stretched out on it.

As he started walking over to his desk, he saw the corner of a magazine poking out from under one of the cushions. He stepped over to it and pulled it out.

"NOOOOOOOOO!" Rangiku flashed over to him and whipped the magazine out of his hand before he could even get a look.

"Rangiku!?"

"Goodness, look at the time," Rangiku glanced at the clock, "I promised Nanao that I'd visit her today once you'd gotten back from your meeting."

"But-"

The office door had flown open as Kotaro came bounding inside grinning, "Daddy's back!"

"Yes he is sweetie, now you be a good boy for him while I pop over to the Eighth," she kissed Kotaro on the lips then gave Toushiro a little wave before quickly departing the office.

Toushiro stared after her feeling utterly baffled.

* * *

><p>Many many miles away from the Seireitei, and deep into the heart of the Rukongai sat a tall cliff with a sheer drop. It was so high up that the tops were constantly buffeted by strong winds. The grassy tops were practically flattened by the onslaught of the strong gusts. It was upon this cliff that a pale haired figure sat, seemingly unconcerned by the wind whipping his hair into his face and his robes clinging around his body. He was sat crossed legged a few feet away from the edge, looking out upon the horizon.<p>

Just like the ocean in the middle of a raging storm, Ukitake was filled with so many emotions swirling up like giant waves and crashing over his heart. His mind felt full of confusion. Almost like a tornado was tearing through his mind, dragging and tossing everything around until it all came together in one solid mass of chaos and torment. Through all the emotions and confusing thoughts, the predominant thing he was feeling was pain.

The last time he could remember feeling pain such as this, had been the unfortunate night when he'd lost both Kaien and Miyako. He felt the exact same way as he did back then. But the thing that'd been confusing him the most, was why? He hadn't lost anyone. On the contrary, he'd technically gained someone. So why did he feel dead inside, and as though he was grieving deeply?

Shouldn't he be jumping for joy on finding out that he actually had the one thing he'd always dreamed off? A child of his own. A child that was his and Retsu's.

Somehow pretending that he was happy about it only ended up making him feel hollow inside. Yes he'd wanted his own child, but he'd also wanted to be a father. Since finding out the truth, the only thing he could think of was all of the things he'd missed out on. The pregnancy and all the things that went with it. The actual birth and all the milestones as she grew and developed. Birthdays. Christmas's. Taking her to festivals as a family. Teaching her. Playing with her.

It felt as though a huge chunk of his life had been robbed from him.

And the worst thing of all... Since she'd been assigned to the Eighth and since Shunsui had taken her on as his Lieutenant, she had actually been in his life too. All those years she'd been right in front of his face, and he'd never known. Never questioned it. Never had a clue.

Looking back, the similarities between them seemed blatantly obvious now. How could he have not noticed? Then there was her resemblance to Retsu, and boy did she share Retsu's looks. The hair, the eyes, the skin. How could he have been so blind to it all?

Ukitake sighed heavily, flopped back against the grass, and stared up into the grey sky. He was aware that he was starting to feel pretty chilly. He couldn't say how long he'd been up here. The last two weeks had been unbearable for him. After Retsu had shown Nanao the photographs, then seeing Nanao and Shunsui's subsequent reaction to them. Well needless to say, he hadn't stuck around. It was a bit of a blur, but he vaguely remembered them calling after him as he stormed out the room. Retsu had caught up with him and he'd reacted badly. Said some awful things. Screamed and yelled at her.

He felt awful about those things now. From the moment the words had left his mouth, he'd regretted them deeply. Pain was the predominant thing he was feeling, but next to that guilt was a close second.

For the majority of two weeks he'd shut himself away in his quarters. He just couldn't face anyone, couldn't face the world. However Kiyone, Sentaro and Rukia's constant querying as to whether he was okay, if he was feeling well, and whether he needed help, had gotten too much for him. Then there was all the messages from Shunsui. Phone calls, texts, butterflies, letters, post it notes. Any means in which to communicate, Shunsui had tried it.

And he'd ignored it all.

Retsu had kept her distance from him. After their parting argument, he couldn't blame her. She was most likely hurting just as much as he was. It didn't help that he'd screamed, 'I don't want to see you ever again,' at her

Ukitake sighed and mentally slapped himself. What the hell had he been thinking?

Correction. He hadn't been thinking. Logic had abandoned him and he'd been acting irrational. Never in a million years could he have imagined ever talking to Retsu like that. For that he felt deeply ashamed.

One thing was for certain though. He missed her terribly.

Despite this huge secret she'd kept from him for years on end, as devastated as he felt, he still loved her. Now that he was thinking rationally again, he realised that Retsu would've felt incredibly broken hearted at having to give up their only child. Then on top of that, being forbidden from ever telling him about it. No, Retsu wasn't to blame here. If anyone was to blame, it was the Head-Captain for issuing that awful order.

He sighed heavily. If only there was a way to change the past. He instantly shook away that thought. The past couldn't be altered. What's done, is done. So where did he go from here, he wondered. He certainly couldn't continue on feeling angry, resentful and hard done by. He certainly couldn't avoid facing the situation any longer either. Not only did this situation involve Retsu and himself, it also involved Nanao. He'd been so focused on his hurt and anger, he'd never stopped to think about how this would affect Nanao. She'd been just as much in the dark as what he'd been.

Now everything was out in the open between Retsu, Nanao and himself, where did they go from here?

Ukitake draped his arm over his eyes feeling exasperated. He was aware of something uncomfortable in his pocket, which was sticking into his back. He fished the offending item out of his pocket and saw that it was his soul phone. Which he'd purposefully kept switched off for the last few days.

It was tempting to switch it on, but if he did that he would easily give away his position. Every soul phone had a tracker in it. It was standard procedure. He was miles away from the Seireitei, for all he knew the place could've been invaded and destroyed and he wouldn't be non the wiser. Right now all that mattered to him, was finding a quiet spot where he couldn't be disturbed and where he could get some peace and quiet, a little bit of space from everything, and more importantly some time. He just needed some uninterrupted time to sort through his thoughts and feelings. He just couldn't face anyone until he'd managed to re-centre himself again.

No doubt he would be in a lot of trouble with the Head-Captain when he decided to return. Today had been the third Captains meeting in a row that he'd skipped out on.

He sighed heavily again and closed his eyes. He still had a lot more thinking to do.

Ukitake had no idea how long ago he'd fallen asleep, but when he woke up again he felt soaked through and icy cold. Thick rain clouds had formed above him whilst he'd been asleep and the heavy rain had been pelting him. It was much darker now too. It wasn't quite night time, but it was getting close.

He felt a shadow pass over him, and he happened to glance up into the sky. Just as he looked up he caught sight of a large green tail, that was attached to a large green Manta Ray.

"Minazuki?" He questioned himself.

Ukitake got to his feet and spun around, just as Minazuki gracefully glided down and landed silently in front of him. Then, Unohana slid off its back and landed just as gracefully in front of him. Just like him, she was looking as equally soaked through and cold as what he was.

There was a moment where they just stared at each other in silence, as the wind howled around them and the rain continued to lash at them.

Ukitake broke the silence first, "Retsu, what...?"

"I was... worried," Unohana took a step closer to him, "Shunsui is worried too."

Ukitake turned his back on her and glanced out upon the horizon, "I needed some space."

Unohana took a few steps closer and rested a gentle hand between his shoulder blades, "I understand."

There was an agonisingly long silence, until...

"I'm sorry," they both said in unison.

Ukitake turned on his heel and Unohana closed the distance between them, wrapping her arms around his neck. He sank down to his knees and wrapped his arms tightly around Unohana's waist, while she nestled her face into the crook of his neck.

A small sob escaped from Unohana, "I never meant to hurt you."

Ukitake's voice was thick with tears, "It wasn't your fault, if you were ordered not to.."

"I still should have said something sooner."

Ukitake shook his head, "We cant change the past, but at least I know the truth now."

They pulled away slightly so they could see each others faces. Unohana lifted her hand and rested it against Ukitake's icy cheek, wiping his tears away with her thumb. Ukitake reached for her other hand and lifted it to his lips, placing a kiss against her icy fingertips.

"What do we do now Retsu?" Ukitake asked in a soft voice, "This changes everything."

"I know it does," Unohana agreed and allowed her hand to drop from his cheek. She disentangled her other hand from Ukitake's, and then gently pulled him back to his feet, "We have a lot to discuss."

Ukitake nodded.

"But first," she started guiding him away from the cliffs edge and over to Minazuki, "Lets get out of this rain," she climbed onto Minazuki's back and Ukitake followed her. Once they'd both settled down, Ukitake threaded his arm around her waist and Minazuki gracefully took to the sky.

* * *

><p>It was a few days later in the Soul Society and Shunsui was sat in his living room with his legs crossed under a low table. On the table in front of him were a few stacks of paperwork, that had been sent over from the Eighths office. The seated officers had been doing a good job of keeping on top of the paperwork for Nanao, however some of the more sensitive paperwork could only be tackled by either Nanao or himself.<p>

This particular form that was sat in front of him was the quarterly budget report that should have been sent in weeks ago.

Shunsui had his elbow propped up on the table, his hand supporting his chin as he surveyed the report, "So then... take that figure from the food budget... add it to that figure, times it by that figure," he frowned. When Nanao had been explaining it to him it had seemed so... easy. But now that he was sat down and doing it for himself, "No wait... was it that figure?"

He sighed in exasperation and pushed the budget report to one side, "I'll come back to that," he pulled the next form off the pile towards him and practically baulked. It was the same form that he'd placed to one side earlier. He'd attempted to do it but it seemed quite complicated. He ignored the form again and pulled another towards him. This one happened to be the training rota again. He'd been having trouble grasping Nanao's complex scheduling system and had decided to abandoned it. The next form was just as bad. And the next.

Its not as though he was completely clueless when it came to doing paperwork. On the contrary, he used to do it quite regularly back in his early days of being a Captain. But when you're a Captain for several hundreds of years, doing the same old paperwork over and over again... well it becomes quite boring. He couldn't remember exactly when he started fobbing it off onto his lieutenants, but it was well before Nanao-chan came along. However once Nanao-chan had taken over, and with her top notch organizing skills, the paperwork had become like a foreign language to him. One that he just couldn't seem to grasp.

Nanao had been trying to do the paperwork but he'd stepped in and had made her take a break. She had protested by saying that it would never get done, but he'd assured her that he'd work on it for her.

Shunsui placed his writing brush down and flexed his fingers. He glanced out of the window and saw that Nanao was sat outside on her usual bench getting some air. This had been something that she'd been doing regularly since Unohana's revelation. It was quite a chilly day but she seemed to be well wrapped up.

Since that day at the Fourth, Nanao hadn't had any contact with either Ukitake or Unohana. Shunsui had spoken briefly about things with Nanao, but he knew deep down that it wasn't him that she wanted to talk to about things. It was Ukitake and Unohana.

Shunsui knew his friends well, and he knew that they needed to sort things out between themselves first before they could move forward. This was something that he'd told Nanao, and she understood fully.

He tore his eyes away from the window and forced himself to focus on the form in front of him. Bit by bit, things were starting to make sense and he actually felt as though he was getting somewhere with it. He was busy jotting down a few calculations and failed to notice footsteps approaching until a hand landed on his shoulder.

Shunsui smiled and placed his writing brush down, "Hi sweetheart," he tilted his head back to glance at Nanao-chan.

"Hello honey!" Ukitake grinned back at him.

"Juu!" Shunsui startled and jumped to his feet, causing Ukitake's hand to slide off his shoulder, "Don't do that! Jeez."

"I'm sorry, I'll announce my presense next time," Ukitake's eyes dropped down to the table and the forms sitting on them, "Although if I'd announced my presense, I would most likely have missed an incredibly rare occurrence. Are you actually doing paperwork?"

"Yes I am, do you have a problem with it?" Shunsui enquired.

Ukitake held one hand up in surrender, in his other hand he was holding a small basket of what smelt like sweet buns, "Not at all."

Shunsui ran his eyes over Ukitake, it seemed as though he hadn't slept much at all during the night. But other then that, he seemed quite... happy. "So finally decided come out of hiding them?"

"I wasn't hiding Shunsui," Ukitake stepped over to the couch and sat down, "I just needed time to digest things."

"You still ran away like a little girl panicking," Shunsui reached his arms out and stretched, popping a few bones back into place, "So... how are things with Retsu?" he trailed off waiting for Ukitake's reply.

"She came looking for me," Ukitake glanced at Shunsui and frowned, "She found me in my quiet spot. I had no idea she knew about that place, only you know about it... SHUNSUI!"

"What?" He asked innocently.

"You told her!?" Ukitake replied with indignation.

"Told her what exactly?" Shunsui asked seemingly bored.

"You told Retsu where she could find me."

"Yes I did tell her Juu, because I knew Retsu was the only person who could actually talk some sense into you. You wouldn't talk to me about anything after all. So does it really matter now?"

Ukitake sighed, "No I guess not."

Shunsui was silent for a moment, "So did you two talk things over then?"

Ukitake nodded.

"So what happens now? I assume the reason why you're here is to see Nanao-chan right?"

"Yes if she wants to see me. I'll understand fully if she doesn't want to."

"Now why wouldn't she want to see you Juu?" Shunsui quizzed him.

"I didn't exactly react well to the news at first," Ukitake scratched the back of his neck, "Goodness knows what she thought of me after that."

"I think she was too shocked herself to have really noticed your... departure," Shunsui folded his arms across his chest.

"Shunsui, how has Nanao been since finding out?" Ukitake asked softly.

"Quiet," Shunsui replied, "Very very quiet," he stood up and stepped over to the window and gazed out at the garden, "I don't think she's upset about it or anything. But she has been doing a lot of thinking. I've tried talking to her about it, but I don't think its me who she wants to talk to about all of this," he gave Ukitake a knowing look, "Its you and Retsu who she needs to talk to. Not me."

Shunsui scanned the garden from his vantage point and notice that Nanao was no longer sitting on the bench. Instead she was now sitting under a maple tree. Its red leaves stood out against the grey overcast sky. He squinted and could see that she was looking at something in her hands. He didn't even need to guess what she was holding. He'd caught her several times over the last two weeks staring at those photographs.

He turned away from the window and back towards Ukitake, "Nanao-chan's sitting under the large maple tree in the garden Juu," Shunsui hooked his thumb in the general direction, "You should go to her."

Ukitake glanced back at him before nodding, he rose to his feet and picked up the basket of sweet buns.

Before Ukitake reached the door Shunsui said, "For what its worth Juu, even though you've only just found out that Nanao's your daughter."

Ukitake paused but didn't look back.

Shunsui continued, "You've still been like a father to her all these years. Don't forget that buddy."

Ukitake didn't reply, but Shunsui noticed that his shoulders relaxed slightly before he disappeared out the door. Shunsui stepped back over to the window and leant against the window sill. He watched as Ukitake carefully approached Nanao and saw her stand up slowly when she realised who it was.

He heard the soft creaking of floorboards as another pair of footsteps entered the room, "Hello Retsu," he turned slightly to glance over his shoulder at her.

Unohana stepped over to join him, "Thank you Shunsui. Juushiro needed to hear that from someone other then myself."

Shunsui slid his eyes closed, "I meant it Retsu," he opened them again and glanced at Unohana, catching her expression he reached his arms out and pulled her into a gentle hug, "I know you've had to keep your distance from her for years, but you've always had her best interests at heart too."

Unohana kept her silence as she closely watched Nanao and Ukitake out in the garden. A few minutes later she replied, "I couldn't be a proper mother towards her Shunsui. So I had to contend myself by being a friend to her. But it always felt.."

"Hollow?" Shunsui supplied.

Unohana nodded, "But having her friendship, was better then having nothing at all."

"Things will get better now Retsu, I'm sure of it. Things are all out in the open. It will take time but you can build the sort of relationship you want to have with Nanao-chan."

"I hope so Shunsui, but I do have my doubts considering what happened."

"Well, Juu seems to be doing okay," Shunsui pointed to them. Ukitake and Nanao were sat under the maple tree sharing the sweet buns. Ukitake had draped his arm around Nanao's shoulder, as though he feared losing her.

"It will be easier for Juushiro, he was left in the dark too. Whereas I... I was the one who had to," Unohana broke off.

"You didn't abandon her," Shunsui comforted her, "The Seireitei was no place for her, you just placed her in a safer place for the time being."

"I wont ever see it that way Shunsui," Unohana let out a soft sigh.

"You should stop blaming yourself Retsu. It wasn't your fault. Juu's forgiven you."

"Yes but will Nanao ever forgive me?"

Shunsui sighed and pulled away from her, "You wont know until you go and talk to her," he reached for Unohana's hand and started guiding her towards the door, "My Nanao-chan is a very forgiving woman. Much like her lovely mother," he grinned and stepped to one side indicating for her to go outside. Unohana glanced at him and rested her hand against his cheek. Shunsui lifted his large hand and covered hers, "Retsu, the sooner you do this, the sooner you three can start to move forward. Not only has Nanao-chan gained two parents, but those two parents also have two grandchildren on the way. The three of you need some time together."

Unohana nodded then headed outside to join Ukitake and Nanao.

Shunsui mentally patted himself on his back. By divulging Ukitake's secret place to Unohana, which resulted in her going after him. It had given the two of them chance to talk things over. They had forgiven each other and now they could move forwards with Nanao-chan. It'd been frustrating to sit on the sidelines and see his two friends dancing around and avoiding each other again. He'd seen it happen so many time before. But he refused to let history repeat itself yet again.

Shunsui glanced at the budget form sitting on the table, he added his final calculation to it and signed it off. He'd even finished the hardest piece of paperwork for Nanao-chan too.

Yes he'd certainly earned himself a drink this time.


	47. Chapter 47

Hello everybody. I would like to apologise for the long wait on this update. I had a rather important project crop up and I had to put the story on hold while I gave the project my full attention. Things have settled down now, and I have a bit more free time on my hands. So during Christmas I'm trying to get the last few chapters of this story finished off. Thank you everybody for your continued support. And a special thanks to a certain person who gave me a kick up the arse to continue on with this chapter. I hope this chapter more then makes up for the long time you had to wait for it. Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 47<p>

The following weeks flew by in the Seireitei. One moment they were counting down to Christmas. Christmas came and went. New Years Eve, came and went. Valentines day. All the usual milestones of the year seemed to creep up on them, and if they happened to blink for a moment. It was over. Gone for another year.

April. It was April already. Toushiro scowled as he signed and dated the report he was working on. Time seemed to be flying by at a shocking pace. To him it seemed only five minutes ago that he'd been stood by the Christmas tree with Rangiku and Kotaro. It only seemed like five minutes ago that she'd broken the news to him of her pregnancy. She had told him that she were already a month into the pregnancy. Now it was April. APRIL! Only four months remaining. Where was the time going?

He glanced up from his paperwork and over to the couch to where Rangiku was resting. The baby magazine she'd been reading had slipped from her grasp. His Captains haori was being used as a blanket, if it wasn't Rangiku using it as a blanket then it would be Kotaro.

Toushiro placed his writing brush down and flexed his aching hand. He could hear Kotaro playing outside with Holly, the other new addition to their family unit. The tiny puppy that'd followed him home on Christmas Eve wasn't so little now. It hadn't been immediately obvious what breed of dog she were, but as she'd started to grow it soon emerged that she was a chocolate Labrador. How he'd prayed that she would stay a small dog, but no, she had to morph into a large chubby thing that loved to eat them out of house and home.

He didn't know what game the two were playing together but Holly's bark, which just happened to be rather on the loud side, was floating through the window despite it being closed.

Toushiro heard a sleepy sigh. It seemed the noise from outside had been loud enough to stir Rangiku from her nap, she yawned then sat up rubbing her eyes.

He got up from his chair and stepped over to the couch and perched himself on the coffee table in front of her, "Rise and shine."

"How long have I been asleep," she asked groggily.

"A couple of hours, I didn't want to disturb you."

Rangiku stretched her arms lazily above her head, the movement clearly showing her protruding bump. Toushiro transferred himself from the coffee table to the couch. Rangiku snuggled into his side and rested her head on his shoulder. Toushiro threaded his arm around her waist and rested his spare hand over her stomach.

"I cant believe we're having another one," he placed his lips against her throat and trailed kisses up to her jaw, "A little Rangiku this time."

Rangiku closed her eyes and smiled, "I've been looking at baby names again," she glanced at Toushiro and waited to see what his reaction would be.

Toushiro's face turned into an expressionless mask, "Have you come across a nice, traditional Japanese name yet?"

"No not yet," Rangiku sighed, "Me and Nanao were looking through them together. There's some nice western names, but its hard to tell whether or not the name will fit the baby. I guess we'll just have to wait until she's born, like we did with Kotaro. That's what Nanao's doing with the twins."

"Has she told you what the twins gender is yet?" Toushiro's change in subject had been more than obvious.

"No, she's being very secretive about it. Usually she cant keep a secret from me, but this time she's unbreakable. I gave up trying and turned my attention to breaking Shunsui, but once again no luck. Its like they've made a secret pact or something. Its so frustrating," she huffed.

"Did you loo-"

"Look at the gender of names she was looking at in the book? Yes! But every time I tried to look she closed the book."

Toushiro chuckled, it was always amusing to see Rangiku when she didn't get her own way about something.

"I even got Shunsui drinking in the hopes that it'd loosen his tongue and he'd spill."

"Did it work?"

"No. That damn man holds his drink far too well. Ukitake-san on the other hand..."

"What's Ukitake got to do with it?" Toushiro frowned.

"He was with Shunsui at the time when I joined them. He's a bit of a lightweight when it comes to sake. Four cups in and he was already spilling all the details of the post breakup, make up session he and Captain Unoha-"

"I don't need to know Rangiku," Toushiro cut her off.

"Are you sure? It was pretty steamy, kinda puts you and me to shame."

"I still don't need to know."

Rangiku giggled then settled back against him. They sat in silence enjoying each others company, that was until a torrent of noise made a beeline for their office. The door swung open with a bang. They both startled and sat up straight glancing at the door.

Kotaro was stood in the doorway grinning at them. He was covered head to toe in mud and on a whole looking filthy, "Hi Mum, Hi Dad."

"NO!" Toushiro barked and jumped to his feet, "You are NOT coming in here like that Kotaro."

Rangiku glanced out the window, she'd had no idea that it'd been raining, "Sweetie what have I told you about playing out in the rain?"

"I was playing with Holly, she needs her exercise."

Rangiku frowned, it was actually sunny out. Why were they so wet and muddy?

Holly appeared at the door, panting heavily and wagging her tale. She looked just as filthy as Kotaro.

"NO!" Toushiro screamed again. However Holly barged her way into the office, marking the pristine wooden floors with her muddy paws. Before Toushiro could grab her and drag her outside, she lifted her head, tilted it to one side, then started shaking her coat dry. All the mud and water that'd collected on her coat flew off her body in a shower, splattering the walls, bookcases, couch, desk... everything.

Rangiku threw her hands up to shield her face while Toushiro launched himself at the dog, he grabbed her collar and dragged her out the room swearing.

Kotaro looked sheepishly at Rangiku, "I'm sorry."

Rangiku grabbed his hand and started marching him out of the office, "Lets get you home, get you cleaned up, then you're coming back here to help your dad clean that mess up."

"But.."

"No Buts. You should know better then that."

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><p>An hour later the office was looking much cleaner. Luckily everything was made of wood, with the exception of the couch which was leather, so everything wiped clean easily enough with a damp cloth. The main casualty however had been the paperwork. Toushiro was sat at his desk furiously wiping splodges of mud off the reports that he'd spent the best part of the day reading through and signing, "Damn mutt," he muttered under his breath as he placed another report to one side.<p>

Rangiku sensed that he was in a foul mood and figured it was for the best if she gave him some space. Kotaro was sat on the couch next to her reading his book trying to keep his head down and out of further trouble.

Rangiku had a book open herself, she was busy searching through yet another book full of baby names.

"Abigail, Adriana, Anya, Annabel, Aimee-Leigh," Rangiku paused and glanced at Toushiro across the top of her book. She couldn't be too sure as to whether he was listening or not.

"Bahija, Barbara, Bea, Beatrice, Beca, Bella," She paused and glanced at Toushiro before saying the next one, "Bellona."

Toushiro paused slightly and a very light scowl formed on his face.

Rangiku grinned and started searching for some truly awful names to get a reaction out of him. She'd tried countless times to discuss names with him, but so far he'd shown no interest. Which was odd, surely he would be interested in what they were going to call their daughter. When it'd been Kotaro...

She let out a small sigh. Kotaro had been different. For three months of her pregnancy Toushiro had been in a coma and when he came round it took a further two months for him to regain his strength and fully recover. Then he'd had it all on with rebuilding the Division and getting their home ready for Kotaro's arrival. Thinking about names hadn't even crossed either of their minds. Even when she'd gone into labour, she still hadn't chosen a name. It was only when she'd held Kotaro in her arms for the first time and had gotten a good look at him did the name fall into place.

Not this time. This time they were going to have at least some idea.

"Blaze, Bertha, Bernice, Breanna, Callisto, Cassiopia, Danika, Delaneira," Rangiku grinned when she started to see a tick forming in Toushiro's eye.

"Dominika, Dorothy, Dotty, Edith, Faatimah, Gladys, Harriot, Jacqueline, Margot, Myrtle," She was pleased to see his hand clenching tightly around his writing brush, "Nora, Olga, Petra," as she continued on she kept raising her voice louder and louder and made sure to pronounce each ugly syllable, "Quentiniana, Rabia, Saskia, Theodora..."

Rangiku quickly peeked at Toushiro and recognised that he was about to blow up any second now.. "Vera.."

"ENOUGH!" Toushiro slammed his hand down on the desk and shot to his feet, "We are NOT calling our daughter by some hideous western name. We are a Japanese family and our daughter will have a traditional Japanese name. End of discussion!"

Rangiku was slightly taken back at first but then she smiled, "Finally decided to take an interest then?"

Toushiro scowled, "I HAVE been interested, however I just don't see the point in choosing a name until she is born. The name you choose at first may not necessarily suit her once she's born!"

Rangiku sighed in exasperation and shot back, "Well it would be nice to have a general idea of what names we do like!"

"Well I don't like any of those ridiculous western names," Toushiro replied stubbornly.

"And why not?" Rangiku replied in annoyance.

"Because either one of them would be out of place in this family!"

"How so?" Rangiku shot back hotly.

"Do you really want an example?" Toushiro yelled back sarcastically.

"Maybe I do!"

"Fine!" Toushiro hissed, "Toushiro Hitsugaya, Rangiku Hitsugaya, Kotaro Hitsugaya," he paused then folded his arms across his chest, "Perfectly normal Japanese names. Why ruin it with something completely foreign such as.. I don't know... Sarah, or Jane, or or something completely ugly such as Nora, Olga, or god damn Petra!" Toushiro looked horrified, "What were you thinking even considering those names? Do you hate our baby girl or something? Think of the ridicule she'd suffer."

"Well FINE Mr Baby Name Policeman, what do YOU think would be an acceptable name for our daughter? I've been trying to ask for your opinion for weeks but you act like you're not even interested!"

There was a knock on the office door and both Rangiku and Toushiro yelled a little hotly, "Come in!"

The door opened and Ukitake stepped in grinning, "I'm not disturbing anything am I?"

Kotaro who'd been sat on the couch with his hands covering his ears perked up straight away on seeing Ukitake, "Grandad!" He jumped off the couch and bounded over to him for a hug.

Ukitake scooped him up fondly and hugged him, "Hello young man," he then turned his attention to Toushiro and Rangiku who were both red in the face from yelling at each other and catching their breath, "Hmm I can come back later if you'd like. I'm just doing the rounds and visiting everyone."

Rangiku glanced at Toushiro and winced. His face looked like thunder, "You don't mind do you Captain Ukitake, we were just..."

"Having a disagreement?" Ukitake supplied, he glanced around the room and noticed a fine coating of frost covering every surface, "Its fine dear, I'll be over at the Eighth."

Just as Ukitake was heading out the door, Kotaro flung himself at him and said, "Can I come too?"

Ukitake glanced at Rangiku who nodded.

"Of course you can sweetie, say hi to Nanao for me okay?"

Kotaro grinned and nodded happily, pleased to be going with Ukitake and leaving his quarrelling parents behind, "Come on Holly!" On hearing her name, the dog wriggled out from under Rangiku's desk and shot out the door after Kotaro and Ukitake.

Once it was just the two of them again Rangiku sighed and sat back down on the couch, "Why do we always end up arguing about the same thing?"

Toushiro was silent for a moment, "What is so wrong with having a traditional Japanese name?"

"I just want to be a little different. There are some nice western names."

Toushiro's hackles were up instantly.

And so it began.

Baby name argument number six.

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><p>All was quiet and peaceful at the Eighth Division. The sun was shining, the temperature was pleasant, and the cherry blossom trees were in full bloom. Shunsui breathed in deeply and let it out as a sigh. He truly loved this season.<p>

He adjusted his position under his favourite tree that sat in the front garden of his home. Generally at this time of the year he would be wandering miles away from the Eighth Division, enjoying the many delights that spring had to offer. But not today. With the imminent arrival of the twins, he wanted to stay as close to Nanao-chan as possible.

The only problem with that arrangement though, was that they were driving each other crazy.

Nanao was insistent on doing things, despite the fact that she was under strict orders from Unohana to rest and conserve her energy. Hell she was going to need it once she went into labour. But no. She just had to keep finding things to do and making work for herself, which made Shunsui nervous. Very nervous. She insisted that she felt fine. But every time she moved, then suddenly paused and winced, it set his nerves on edge.

When she'd first woken up that morning, Nanao seemed to be rubbing her belly and sides a lot. This concerned him. He'd tried to convince her to let him call Unohana so she could be checked over. But Nanao refused insisting she felt fine and that it was a natural part of pregnancy. Then she'd banished him from the house so she could get some peace. Since then he'd been under his tree, giving Nanao the space she needed, enjoying the cherry blossoms which he loved to do. But he was close enough to keep an eye on her.

Shunsui sighed again and rolled onto his side. He felt something go thump and realised the book he'd been reading had slid off his stomach and landed on the ground next to him.

Shunsui could feel three pressures approaching the house, so he pulled himself up into a sitting position and lounged back against the tree. He heard three sets of footsteps approaching and then they rounded the corner.

"Uncle Shun-shun!" Kotaro ran forward and bounded over to him for a hug.

"Hey little buddy," Shunsui opened his arms and Kotaro crashed against his chest, almost winding him. Holly also bounded over and started barking at him and licking at his ears.

"Nice doggy, nice doggy," Shunsui muttered as he tried to pull away from the wet slobbery tongue.

Kotaro pulled away from Shunsui and said, "Holly SIT!" By which the dog stepped away from Shunsui and sat next to Kotaro, but kept two eyes pinned carefully on Shunsui.

"You've got her well trained Kotaro," Shunsui praised.

Kotaro grinned, "She only listens to me and Mummy."

Shunsui chuckled, "I bet that goes down well with Toushiro." He pushed his hat out of his eyes and smiled at his two approaching friends.

Ukitake came strolling down the path, hand in hand with Unohana, "Good Morning Shunsui."

"Morning Juu buddy," he pulled himself to his feet and turned to Retsu with a smile, "Early morning doctors call Retsu?"

Unohana smiled serenely at him, "Its vital to keep close tabs on Nanao since she is only days away from her due date. Oh and Shunsui, its afternoon."

"Really? It felt earlier," Shunsui glanced up at the sky, "Well I guess I best show you inside, I left Nanao-chan having a nap."

Unohana nodded approvingly, "As long as she's getting plenty of rest Shunsui."

Shunsui stepped over to the front door and beckoned them in. While they had been talking, Holly had dived for Shunsui's book and now Kotaro was busy trying to wrestle it out of her mouth.

Shunsui closed the door behind him leaving Kotaro and Holly outside. He lifted a finger to his lips and indicated that Nanao was sleeping in the living room. He quietly slid the door open... then baulked, "Na-Nanao-chan!" He rushed into the room, "You're suppose to be resting!"

Ukitake grinned in amusement and stepped into the living room too.

Nanao was halfway up a ladder and furiously cleaning the tops of the bookcases.

"What the hell are you doing up there!? Sweetheart, please get down before you fall down! Think of the twins," Shunsui sounded damn near panicked.

Nanao sighed in exasperation, "Shunsui I'm just cleaning. This place is filthy."

Shunsui glanced around the perfectly spotless, and scrupulously clean living room. Just like the rest of the house it was sparkling, tidy and not a single thing out of place. For years he'd been use to living on his own and had been quite comfortable with mess. But from the moment Nanao had moved in with him, his slobby days had been brought to an abrupt end. Nanao hated clutter and sloppiness. It was that tiny fact that was confusing the hell out of him now, "Erm Nanao-chan, the whole house is pristine, just like it usually is."

Nanao slowly descended the ladder, "But there are still some areas which need to be sorted before the twins arrive. Your side of the closet for example."

"But Nanao-chan.." he started to complain but Unohana stepped forward with a knowing smile.

"Well this is an encouraging sign," she placed a comforting hand on Shunsui's arm.

"Retsu she was up a ladder. How is that comforting?"

Unohana patiently replied, "Its the nesting instinct Shunsui, Nanao's simply preparing for the twins arrival by ensuring the home is ready for them."

"By going UP a ladder?"

"Why don't you go and make a start on the tea Shunsui, I would like to talk to Nanao anyway," Unohana replied in a gentle tone.

"Fine, would you like green tea or jasmine?" He asked politely as he headed for the kitchen.

"Any is fine Shunsui."

Once Shunsui had left the room Ukitake stepped forward and pulled Nanao into a gentle hug, "How are you doing dear?" He asked with a proud smile.

Nanao sighed softly, "Apart from being driven insane by Shunsui's constant worrying, I'm fine. I actually feel quite energetic today."

Unohana brushed a stray strand of hair away from Nanao's face, "That's good, but please try not to over do things Nanao. Yes you have the energy now and most likely want to get things done. But you really do need to conserve whatever energy you do have for the birth. Its going to be tough anyway with you having twins, but factor in the additional spiritual pressure you'll need. Its going to be very draining for you."

Nanao pulled in a sharp breath and ran her hand over her belly.

"Are you okay?" Unohana asked concerned.

"Its just the twins kicking me, they seem to do that whenever they hear a voice that they like."

Unohana placed her hands over Nanao's belly, "I just want to check what position they are in if that's okay."

Nanao nodded and glanced around for the nearest seat. Ukitake held her arm and helped to guide her down onto a squishy floor cushion.

"Hmm," Unohana hummed softly as she examined Nanao, "We know the largest of the two twins has already sunk down. It seems the smaller of the two has done the same."

Ukitake's face lit up when he heard Unohana's assessment.

"Nanao have you had any unexplained pains?" Unohana's hand was lit with a soft blue orb of kido which she ran over Nanao's stomach.

"A few, mostly here in my sides," Nanao rested her hands over the area where she'd felt them.

Unohana examined her for a few minutes longer, "I doubt we'll have much longer to wait," she had a rare frown on her face, "I just wish I could determine the exact amount of time. I don't like to guess about these things. Being due in a few hours, and being due in twelve hours is a huge time difference when it comes to labour. Nanao, I need to keep an even closer eye on you now. You're showing very early signs of labour. I have a feeling with you, its going to be a quick labour. If your waters haven't broken by the end of the day, I want to admit you to the Fourth."

Shunsui came bustling in with a tea tray and placed it down on the low table. He then grabbed a few more cushions and tossed them down next to Nanao.

They all settled down and just as the tea was about to be poured, the front door crashed open and suddenly Rangiku was bursting into the living room panting heavily.

"Rangiku!" Ukitake startled.

"I cannot believe how hard-headed and stubborn Toushiro can be!"

Kotaro appeared behind her, "Are you still mad at dad?"

"I'm not mad at him sweetie," Rangiku's voice softened slightly, "I just want to grind him into a pulp."

"Come and have a seat Ran-chan," Shunsui grinned and patted the spare cushion next to him.

Ukitake grinned too, "Still arguing about baby names?"

Rangiku plonked herself down with a sigh, "I think I liked things better last time, when he was in a coma for three months," she replied moodily.

"Don't despair Rangiku," Unohana's voice was soft and soothing, "Its completely normal to have a few clashes of opinion during pregnancy. Even more so the second time around."

Shunsui laughed, "Thank goodness we're having twins Nanao-chan, just pop them out and jobs done."

Nanao gave him a scathing look.

"What!?" Shunsui defended himself, "It was just a joke."

Ukitake clipped Shunsui around the ear to save Nanao the trouble.

After bustling around and hugging everyone, Kotaro finally decided to settle down on Rangiku's knee. He wrapped his arms around her neck and gave her a squeeze.

Rangiku kissed his cheek, "Thank you sweetie, I needed that."

Kotaro just grinned back showing off his dimples.

"Are you two still arguing over baby names?" Nanao asked after taking a sip of her tea.

"Of course. All I have to do is mention baby and name in the same sentence and we're at each others throats."

Kotaro glanced up at her, "Mum you're not really going to call my little sister Olga are you?"

"No sweetie, I was just winding Daddy up with those names."

Kotaro frowned, "Oh... well why did you mention them then? If you don't like them and you know Dad wont like them either. Maybe you wouldn't have argued?"

Rangiku just shook her head, "Its what we're like Kotaro, we wind each other up. We fight like cat and dog. Yet we still love each other. Its like the law of physics or something. Opposites attract, clash, yet balance each other out at the same time."

Kotaro frowned. It was the exact same frown as Toushiro's, "It still seems kind of... dumb. Cant you two at least try to compromise?"

Shunsui nearly choked on his tea, "You've just been lectured by a five year old."

"Well I'll have to agree with Kotaro," Ukitake smiled, "They do need to find a compromise, if only to keep the peace."

"Rangiku, what exactly do you two keep arguing about. I know you keep saying its over baby names. But what is the trigger?" Nanao asked with a thoughtful expression.

Rangiku sighed, "Its always the same. He doesn't really give me any clues as to what names he likes. So I start suggesting a few. Only the ones I do suggest he seems to hate. Then he gets all prickly. I feel exasperated and lose my patience. He ignores me, so I start winding him up. He explodes and we argue."

They were all silent while they digested the information.

"That's not true," Kotaro spoke up into the silence. He was busy picking at the hem of his robes.

"What's not true sweetie?" Rangiku asked.

Kotaro glanced up at her and smiled sweetly, "Dads given you lots of clues."

"I don't recall him mentioning any names at all sweetie."

Kotaro rolled his eyes, "That's because you're... you're..."

"Just as stubborn and hard-headed as Toushiro?" Shunsui supplied for him.

Kotaro nodded, "In every argument you've had he always says the same thing."

"Oh and what's that then?" Rangiku asked taking Kotaro very seriously.

"He would like her to have a traditional Japanese name!"

"I know that Kotaro and I really wish he would at least consider Western names too."

"But he hates them, he would really love her to have a pretty Japanese name."

"Kotaro, how do you even know that? He's never mentioned that to me."

"He wrote it down in his logbook..." Kotaro trailed off.

"You've been reading Toshi's logbook again?"

Kotaro looked a little sheepish and nodded, "You wont tell him will you?"

"Will you tell me exactly what he's written?"

"But you said its top secret and I'm now allowed to tell anyone!"

"Well then, I guess I'll just have to tell Daddy you've been reading his logbook again," Rangiku folded he arms under her breasts.

Kotaro mimicked her and folded his arms across his chest and scowled, "Dad said I'm not authorized to divulge sensitive information to third parties."

It was scary how much he looked and sounded like Toushiro.

"Hey! I'm not a third party! I'm your Mother!"

"When I asked Dad what he meant by third parties he said, 'Just don't tell your Mum'."

Rangiku decided to change tactics, "Kotaro if you tell me what he wrote, I will let you have an extra cookie after your dinner tonight."

Kotaro remained stubbornly quiet.

"Fine, how about two extra cookies, will you tell me now?"

"Dad said I mustn't accept bribes offered to me by third parties."

"True little buddy," Shunsui piped up, "But you do possess a rather large bargaining chip. Think of the possibilities."

"Shunsui!" Both Nanao and Ukitake scolded him.

"Sunshine," Unohana called softly and rose to her feet, "Can I talk to you for a minute please?" Kotaro knew better then to refuse. He jumped to his feet and followed her through to the other room.

A few minutes later they returned and Kotaro sat back on Rangiku's knee.

Unohana gracefully sat back down on her cushion. Kotaro glanced at Unohana and she gave him an encouraging nod.

"I want you and Dad to stop arguing. So for that reason alone I will tell you what he's written."

"Thank you sweetie," Rangiku gave him a little squeeze, "So what did he write then?"

"I will only tell you if," Kotaro paused and frowned, "If you will let me name my baby sister."

Everyone glanced around at each other. Ukitake smiled, "Well that seems very fair. You and Toushiro are having a hard time compromising with each other."

Rangiku's expression softened and she let out a small sigh, "Okay. Deal. To be honest I'm tired of us clashing over the same thing."

Kotaro grinned happily.

"Now for you to keep up your end of the bargain mister, what did Toushiro say?"

"He hates western names."

"That I already know."

"And he wants her to have a pretty, traditional Japanese name," Kotaro continued.

"Kotaro," Rangiku warned.

"Just like Mummy's name," he quickly added then grinned.

"Oh," Rangiku replied taken aback, "He thinks my name is pretty and he wants our daughter to have a pretty name too."

Kotaro nodded, "I'll pick a nice name for her."

Rangiku smiled, "Okay sweetie."

"There's a book with names in it on that table over there Kotaro," Nanao pointed to her right and Kotaro hopped up and went to pick it up. As he did this a small piece of paper fluttered out and drifted to the floor. For a second both Shunsui and Nanao looked horrified. The names on that sheet were a closely guarded secret. Not only did it give away the twins gender, but it also gave away what they were going to be called. Rangiku saw their expressions and quickly shot to her feet, "Let me see!"

"NO!" Both Nanao and Shunsui called.

Nanao reached and plucked the scrap of paper off the floor, just as Rangiku tried to lunge for it. Rangiku tried to grab it but Nanao stretched her arm away from Rangiku's reach. Shunsui then plucked it from Nanao's grasp, shoved it in his mouth, chewed it and quickly swallowed it.

"No Fair!" Rangiku pouted like a child, "Why won't you tell me!?"

"Because its a secret," Nanao replied adamantly, "We both agreed, we would like to keeps the twins gender a secret until they're born."

"But that could take days!" Rangiku pouted, "We've been waiting for nine months, I would just like to know if I'm having nephews or nieces so I know what to buy them!"

Nanao looked apologetic, "I'm sorry Rangiku, but we really do want it to be a surprise for everyone," she placed her cup down and tried to get to her feet. Shunsui rose to his feet and helped her up. It was a bit of an effort and she felt a pain in her side, which she rubbed at.

"Nanao-chan, are you okay?" Shunsui asked concerned.

"I'm fine I just need the bathroom."

"Do you need any help?" He offered.

"Really, I'll be fine," Nanao was walking slowly towards the door when she suddenly stopped and gasped loudly.

"Nanao-chan?"

There was a few seconds silence, which was then broken by the sound of fluids sloshing onto the wooden floor.

"Her waters just broke!" Both Rangiku and Unohana stated at the same time.


	48. Chapter 48

Hi everyone. So this chapter has been a long time coming. But Im now ready to release it. Thank you very much for your patience, and thank you very much to everyone who has left a review, favourited, and added me to your alerts list. Ive been keeping up to date with the manga for some time, because I always like to link my story into the current timeline if I can. However, I've been feeling very dismayed after reading each chapter of the current arc. And I think I died a little after reading the last three releases. All I can say is, I'll keep my bleach universe seperate from that universe. I hope you all enjoy reading this chapter, and I hope it helps to pick a few peoples spirits back up. Happy Reading ^_^

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><p>Someone To Watch Over You Chapter 48<p>

For the best part of the afternoon and well into the evening Nanao's pain filled cries echoed throughout the many corridors and hallways of the Fourth Division. Unohana had predicted that it would be a quick birth. However, the first twin which happened to be the largest of the two, seemed to be in no particular rush to come on out. It was almost as if it was taking its sweet time.

"This is your fault!" Nanao growled at Shunsui after a particularly painful contraction.

"My fault?" Shunsui asked bemused as he flexed the feeling back into his fingertips.

"If our twins have inherited your lazy, laid back ways.." Nanao broke off as another contraction hit. She latched onto the front of Shunsui's robes.

"And breathe," Unohana instructed.

Meanwhile, outside in the corridor Nanao's fresh cries bounced of the walls. Rangiku closed her magazine and dropped it down onto the spare seat next to her, "Nanao's contractions are getting closer together."

"Hmm, and her screams are getting louder too," Ukitake commented as though he was observing the weather.

"I wonder if they're going to be boys or girls," Rangiku sighed.

"That's the million dollar question Rangiku," Ukitake nodded, "There's so many different betting pools, I've lost track."

Another ear-piercing scream filled the corridor and they both winced.

"I never knew Nanao could be so loud," Rangiku jammed her fingers in her ears.

Ukitake chuckled, "That's because she's always so cool, calm and collected. Unless of course Shunsui gets on her wrong side."

"Its enough to wake the dead."

Ukitake's eyes dropped down to Kotaro who was fast asleep in his lap, "Unless of course you're Kotaro who can apparently sleep through anything."

Once Nanao had stopped screaming and the ringing had gone from their ears, they heard the steady approach of footsteps coming down the corridor.

Rangiku smiled when she saw Toushiro heading for them. She jumped to her feet and rushed to him for a hug, "Toshi, I'm glad you're here."

Once Rangiku had loosened her death grip on him, Toushiro walked the last few steps to where Ukitake was sitting with Kotaro.

"I wondered where you two had gone," Toushiro glanced at Kotaro and a small smile formed on his face.

"Look Toushiro, I'm really sorry about earlier, and what I said."

Toushiro shook his head, "No I'm sorry too."

Ukitake discreetly averted his gaze to give them what little privacy he could, which wasn't much considering they were in a very public part of the Fourth, and the fact that he was stuck since Kotaro had fallen asleep on him.

"I don't want to fight any more," Rangiku frowned, "And about our baby girls name."

"Rangiku, I don't want to fight any more either. If you want to give her a Western name, then I can live with that."

"Really?"

"Yes," Toushiro replied.

"Oh.." Rangiku had a small pout.

"Oh, what?" Toushiro had noticed her disappointment.

"Well, erm.." Rangiku twirled a strand of her hair around her finger, "About our little girls name. I was so frustrated that we couldn't see eye to eye, that I kinda told Kotaro that he could pick his sisters name instead. Since we couldn't agree on one."

"Oh.." Toushiro replied.

"Is that a good oh, or a bad oh?" Rangiku winced.

Ukitake smirked and shook his head in amusement, he glanced down at his lap and noticed that Kotaro was starting to stir.

Kotaro sat up looking very groggy as he rubbed at his eyes. His hair was sticking up at all angles.

"Welcome back from the dead young man," Ukitake chuckled.

"Are my cousins here yet?"

"No not yet sweetie," Rangiku smiled and tried to smooth his hair down.

"Hey little man," Toushiro greeted and sat himself down.

"Hi Daddy, are you still mad at Mummy?"

"No, we're friends again now."

Kotaro nodded in approval.

"Do you need the bathroom sweetie?" Rangiku asked as she rose to her feet, "I could do with going myself."

Kotaro nodded and jumped down from Ukitake's lap, "I'm bursting!"

"Well lets take you before you head back home with Daddy."

Toushiro had just settled himself down and was about to ask Ukitake how things were going with Nanao, when the delivery room door flew open. Both Toushiro and Ukitake rose to their feet, expecting some news. But they sank back into their seats again when it only turned out to be one of the nurses wheeling out an empty cart.

"How long as it been now?" Toushiro asked.

Ukitake glanced at the clock on the wall, "Her waters broke just after noon, so about seven, getting on eight hours now."

Rangiku returned a few minutes later, Kotaro bounded over to Toushiro and practically jumped into his arms, "Ready to go home Kotaro?"

Kotaro nodded his head, "I'm hungry."

Toushiro kissed Rangiku, "Will you keep me posted?"

Rangiku smiled, "As soon as we hear some news."

Toushiro left them and Rangiku sank back down onto her seat next to Ukitake, "The waiting is the worst."

"I know dear, but it will be worth it in the end."

Rangiku and Ukitake sat in silence, each listening to the bustle of activity coming from inside the delivery room. They could hear Unohana issuing orders, they could also hear each and everyone of Nanao's painful contractions. They even heard such a tremendous crash that had them both sitting up straight from their slouched positions in their seats.

"My goodness, what was that?" Ukitake wondered.

Before they could wonder further, the delivery room door opened and they saw two nurses trying to drag something from the room. A second later and they saw that it was actually Shunsui's prone body that they were trying to heave out of the room, without much success.

Ukitake shot to his feet and hurried over to help, since he had a lot of personal experience when it came to dragging Shunsui's unconscious body around. "Its okay ladies, I've got him," In one swift movement, he'd lifted Shunsui's upper body, got his arm around his waist and then managed to drape Shunsui's arm around his neck and shoulders. He then dragged him over to the nearby seats and plonked him down, with help from Rangiku, they stretched him out across five seats.

The nurses hurried back inside to help assist Unohana.

Ukitake noticed that Shunsui's pink haori had become dislodged and discarded on the floor just outside the door. He stepped over to retrieve it.

For a brief moment, he had an unobstructed view of Nanao, who was red in the face and sweating from the exertion. He briefly met her eye and gave her an encouraging nod. As he reached for the door to close it so she had some privacy, he heard Nanao call out to him.

"Ukitake-san," she sounded breathless.

Since finding out that he was in fact Nanao's father, Ukitake had encouraged Nanao to be less formal towards him, however it was difficult to break a life times habit and he knew she would find it difficult to address him as 'Dad,' but she had started calling him Ukitake-san, rather then the much more formal, 'Captain Ukitake."

Ukitake was about to offer some encouragement but she was ceased by another contraction.

"Arghhh dammit where's Shunsui!?" She growled through the pain.

"Its quite common for men to faint during labour Nanao," Unohana commented, "He'll come through. But in the meantime lets concentrate on getting the first twin out. You're doing wonderfully."

Nanao returned her gaze to Ukitake and held her hand out, "Can I hold your hand for a little bit please?"

Ukitake stepped over to her side, as soon as his hand was within reach Nanao latched on, tightly. He smoothed her hair back from her forehead, "I'm right here dear."

Unohana frowned at the readings on one of the monitor screens, "Juushiro, could you share some of your reiatsu with Nanao please. Hers is almost drained and the first twin is requiring so much more then what is available. We just need to keep them both stable with a steady stream of reiatsu, just until nature takes its course and they are ready to come out."

Ukitake nodded and started to direct a steady stream of his energy into Nanao, who then utilised it and streamed it into the twins.

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><p>Shunsui groaned and slowly blinked his eyes open, to see Rangiku's face peering down at him with a Cheshire cat grin.<p>

He blinked a few times until the realisation dawned on him and he shot up, "Nanao!"

Rangiku restrained him with her hands on his shoulders, "Is doing just fine at the moment."

"The twins!"

"Haven't made an appearance yet," Rangiku reassured, "Although she must be getting close now. Are you good now?" Rangiku released him and he slowly stood up.

"Yeah, I think so."

"Well then, what are you waiting for? Get back in there. They need you."

Shunsui smiled, grateful that she wasn't teasing him too much. He marched back into the delivery room and returned to Nanao's side.

Ukitake grinned at him and stepped away from Nanao, "Will you be okay now, or are you going to faint like a little girl again?"

Nanao screamed loudly.

Ukitake hurried from the delivery room, Unohana had a strict policy of only allowing one accompanying person in the delivery room during labour.

"The first twin is coming, on your next contraction I need you to push with everything you've got Nanao," Unohana instructed.

Shunsui held Nanao's hand tightly, his other arm was wrapped around her shoulder. He kissed her cheek, "You can do this sweetheart."

"PUSH!"

Nanao pulled in a deep breath, her grip tightened around Shunsui's hand, then she started pushing, hard. Her loudest cry yet echoed and bounced off the walls.

Soon her cries died down and were replaced with loud wails, as their first baby entered the world.

"Congratulations, baby number one is a beautiful bouncing boy," Unohana informed with a soft smile and a look of pride in her eyes, "Shunsui, do you want to help me here?"

Shunsui was overcome with joy, "Nanao-chan! Can you believe it!" He gave her a squeeze before stepping over to Unohana who was gently holding his wailing son and reaching for the scissor. She handed them to Shunsui, "Could you cut the cord here please?"

Shunsui complied, then Unohana quickly wrapped the baby up in a blanket, before handing him over to Shunsui, "Congratulations."

"Nanao-chan, you have to see him, he's adorable," Shunsui had tears in his eyes.

Nanao gave him a smile, which quickly turned to a grimace. Unohana quickly resumed her previous position, "I'm sorry Nanao, we cant stop yet, baby number two will be along much quicker than the first."

Shunsui carefully walked back to Nanao's side, with his son cradled securely in his arm. With his free hand he held onto Nanao's as she started to push all over again.

Within ten minutes, the second twin emerged.

"And twin number two is a very tiny, but very beautiful baby girl," Unohana announced.

Nanao collapsed back into her pillows, gasping for breath, "Shunsui, can I?"

Shunsui understood and he carefully placed their son in Nanao's arms, before stepping over to Unohana, to cut his daughters cord too, "Oh my god, she is so beautiful Nanao-chan," Shunsui wiped his tears away, "They both are."

"Can I see her?" Nanao was still catching her breath.

Unohana wrapped the baby girl in a blanket and handed her to Shunsui, she then stood on her toes to kiss him on the cheek, "Congratulations."

With a large happy smile on his face, he joined Nanao and she got her first glimpse of their daughter, "They have your hair," she commented with a smile. Both of them had a wispy mop of brown curls.

Shunsui leaned in and kissed her forehead, "Nanao, you've made me the happiest man alive."

Nanao smiled and reached up to rest her hand against his stubbly cheek, wiping his tears away with her thumb. She suspected that if hadn't been feeling so exhausted, then she would've most likely have been sharing some tears with him. But as it was, she was spent.

Unohana stepped over and stood on the other side of Nanao's bed. She brushed a few strands away from Nanao's forward and smiled, "They're both beautiful."

"Nanao!" Shunsui exclaimed, "Look, she's opened her eyes! She has your eyes."

Nanao lifted her hand and stroked her daughters forehead with her thumb and smiled, she then looked down at her son in her arms who was peering back at her with a beautiful pair of grey eyes. It was like looking at a miniature Shunsui.

"He has your eyes," she commented and kissed her sons forehead.

Unohana smiled then stepped away from the bed, "I shall give you four some time alone. I'll check them over and weigh them when I return."

"Thank you, Retsu," Shunsui smiled at her, "Thank you for getting them here safely.

Unohana nodded before quietly stepping out of the room.

"I cant believe we're parents Nanao-chan."

"Me neither," Nanao admitted, "I'm still not sure how its going to work with running the Division though."

"Hey, don't worry about that just yet, we'll work something out," Shunsui kissed her again.

Nanao adjusted their son to one side, so that she could make room for her daughter too. Shunsui carefully placed her down, he then perched himself on the edge of Nanao's bed.

"They're identical twins, apart from their eyes," Nanao couldn't take her eyes off of them, "He's an exact replica of you, but she is a nice mix of the two of us."

"She's going to be a beauty, just like her Mother," Shunsui smoothed his daughters curls, "Do you think that the names we picked for them will fit?"

Nanao nodded and gazed down at her son, "Daichi Kyouraku, its perfect. Although I would like to give him a middle name."

"That's fine sweetheart, what middle name do you have in mind?"

"Juushiro. Daichi Juushiro Kyouraku."

"That has a nice ring to it, I'm sure Juu will be thrilled when we tell him," Shunsui dropped his gaze to his daughter, "Kaori Kyouraku," he smiled, "Daddy loves you very much," he glanced back at Nanao, "Will she have a middle name too?"

Nanao nodded, "Retsu."

"Kaori Retsu Kyouraku," Shunsui nodded, "Its perfect."

Unohana returned to the room and started with the after birth procedure. She checked both babies thoroughly and gave them both a perfect ten. She then started to clean Nanao up, and gave her some more pain relief. Then she started to fill out the birth forms with Shunsui's help while Nanao rested.

Daichi started wailing and Nanao instinctively knew that he was requiring a feed. Kaori was also growing restless and in need of a feed too.

Nanao was starting to feel a little daunted, was it possible to feed both at the same time?

Unohana read Nanao's expression well, "Don't worry Nanao, there are a few positions you can use to feed both of them at the same time. If Shunsui could take your daughter for a minute please."

Shunsui carefully lifted Kaori into his arms, While Unohana lifted Daichi into her own arms, she then picked up an extra pillow and placed it behind Nanao's back for support.

Nanao loosened her hospital robe and leaned back into the pillow. Unohana placed Daichi in Nanao's left arm and he greedily latched on and started sucking away. Unohana then instructed Shunsui to place Kaori in Nanao's other arm. With a bit of encouragement, Kaori soon found Nanao and started feeding too.

"Its as natural as breathing Nanao," Unohana commented, "I'll let you give them a good feed before we move you to one of the recovery rooms. Then once you've had something to eat yourself and some rest, I'll then allow you to have some visitors if you feel up to it."

Nanao gave a small nod, "Thank you."

While Nanao was feeding the twins, Unohana pulled Shunsui to one side, "How are you feeling now? You went down pretty hard earlier, did you bump your head at all?"

Shunsui rubbed his head, "Nothing too major."

"Nanao's reiatsu is going to take a few weeks to recover. I suspect it will be the same with yours too."

"It will be worth it. I'm just glad that the labour went smoothly, especially after all the problems we had early on in the pregnancy. I knew it was going to require a lot to keep the twins stable, I just had no idea that they would end up needing all of my reiatsu. I guess I reached my limit and crashed out. Remind me to thank Juu for stepping in for me."

"He's outside with Rangiku, I'm sure they're both eager to speak with you. I only told them briefly that both twins had arrived safely. Nothing more."

Shunsui smiled, "I best go and put both of them out of their misery."

"I may have a riot on my hands soon if you don't."

Shunsui stepped over to Nanao and gazed down at the twins, "Nanao-chan, I'll just be outside talking to Juu and Rangiku."

"Okay," Nanao replied softly, she felt so content sitting there feeding her babies.

Shunsui kissed her forehead, then quietly slipped out of the room.

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><p>Nanao wasn't sure how long she'd been asleep, or to be more precise, when she fell asleep. But as she slowly came to, she heard soft murmurs in the room. The light was different, it was much softer.<p>

She slowly peeked her eyes open and noticed that she was now in a different room, a much more comfortable room then the sterile delivery room.

She glanced over to the right of the room and saw Ukitake cradling Kaori in his arms. He looked delighted and full of pride. Shunsui was standing next to him talking softly to his best friend. Over to the left, Rangiku was sat in a seat with Daichi in her arms who was fast asleep.

Nanao felt a soft hand rest against the top of her head, she glanced up and met Unohana's gentle gaze, "How are you feeling now?"

She still felt sore, but she was feeling better after a bit of rest, "Better."

"Would you like a cup of tea now?"

"Some tea would be great, thank you."

"Lets me help you to sit up," Unohana had her sitting up in no time.

Rangiku saw that she was awake and beamed at Nanao, she stood up from the chair and carefully stepped over to Nanao's bed, "Nanao he's so gorgeous. He's a mini version of Shunsui. And Kaori, what a little cutie!"

Ukitake swept over to the bed too, "I'm so happy for you," he bent down and kissed Nanao's cheek.

"I cant believe how big Daichi is," Rangiku smiled, "I didn't realise how tiny Kotaro really was as a baby, until I saw Daichi here."

"He was rather stubborn about coming out too," Unohana added with an amused smile, "I think he was quite content to stay put."

"Father like son," Nanao commented quietly.

"I heard that Nanao-chan."

Rangiku let out a soft squeal, "I'm so happy, I have a nephew and a niece. Kotaro's going to be thrilled. All he's been talking about for the last few days is whether his cousins had arrived yet."

Daichi started to grow restless in Rangiku's arms, he then started to cry.

"Does Daichi-kun want to go back to Mummy?" Rangiku cooed.

Nanao sat up a bit straighter, "He's after another feed."

Rangiku handed Daichi back to Nanao. His cries had gotten louder and now Kaori was starting to grow restless too.

"It must be the twin thing," Ukitake smiled.

"Shunsui, can you help me please?" Nanao asked as she readjusted Daichi.

"Of course sweetheart."

Rangiku stepped away from the bed to give them room, "I'll just be outside. I told Toushiro that I would let him know how things were going."

Once Ukitake had handed Kaori back to Shunsui he smiled, "I'll just be outside too, so you can have some privacy Nanao."

"And I'll be back again after checking on the other patients," Unohana glided out of the room after Rangiku and Ukitake. She looked back at Shunsui, Nanao and the twins as she closed the door behind her. They were going to make a lovely little family.

"Retsu," Ukitake's voice pulled her out of her musings. He was standing there holding his hand out to her.

Unohana stepped forward and took it, they then started to walk down the corridor together.

"I'm relieved that things are so different in the Seireitei nowadays," Unohana admitted.

"Me too," Ukitake wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"If only things had been different back then," Unohana's voice had a hint of regret in it.

Ukitake paused in his walking and turned to her, "Things may have been different, but we shall never know. I'm happy with how things are now Retsu. In a roundabout way, everything has turned out all right in the end."

Unohana absorbed his words and gave a little nod.

Ukitake beamed at her and started walking again, "Come on, I have a few gifts I'd like to pick up for the twins."

"Juushiro, please tell me that you haven't gone overboard. They've only just been born."

"Its just a couple of things," he defended.

"I've heard that tone before."

"I promise!"

"I've heard that promise too."

Ukitake grinned sheepishly back at her, "I've found all of those baby grows you've had stashed in your office."

Unohana paused, "How did you?"

"And you tell me not to go overboard," he grinned, "You're just as bad Retsu."

"I feel as though..." Unohana began.

"As though you're making up for lost time. Time that you lost with Nanao."

"Yes," Unohana admitted.

"Me too," Ukitake smiled, "Which is why we're going to spoil the twins rotten."

A small smile graced Unohana's lips. She liked that plan a lot.


End file.
